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Co-County Wellness Services marked 40 years of public health work with its annual commemoration of World AIDS Day.
The event, “Raise a Glass in Remembrance,” honored those lost to HIV/AIDS.
The occasion, Dec. 1 at the Inn at Center Park, also recognized Co-County’s four decades of service to Berks and Schuylkill counties.
The organization that began in 1985 during the height of the AIDs crisis now runs a free clinic offering HIV and STI testing, case management and education services.
The organization also leads prevention and outreach programs, including teen pregnancy prevention work in Berks.
But the future is uncertain as funding cuts threaten staffing and services, Executive Director Carolyn Bazik said.
Bazik said the organization traces its origins in the mid-1980s to a single phone call from a mother seeking help for her son, who was dying of AIDS.
At the time, the local community had few resources to address the emerging epidemic, she noted.
That mother’s call led to the formation of Berks AIDS Health Crisis, a volunteer network of clergy, medical providers, activists and people living with AIDS that eventually evolved into today’s organization.
“We have answered the call, literally, in the name of public health in our community for 40 years,” Bazik said. “And I’m very proud of the work we’ve done.”
Over the decades, Co-County Wellness expanded beyond its original mission.
It became one of Pennsylvania’s first AIDS service organizations to secure funding, later purchased its Walnut Street facility in Reading, expanded into Schuylkill County and developed prevention programs that reached nearly every Berks school district.
In 2003, the agency adopted the name Co-County Wellness Services to reflect a broader public health mission.
By 2014, that mission expanded again when the organization became the backbone agency for Berks Teens, a countywide teen pregnancy prevention initiative.
It expanded again during the COVID-19 pandemic when Co-County Wellness Services was tapped by Berks County to handle contact tracing and case investigation and help coordinate vaccination appointments.
“We’ve gone through a lot of changes and metamorphoses along the way to adapt to the changing needs of the pandemic and the changing community health needs that Berks County has,” Bazik said. “And I think that’s really our staying power, is our ability to kind of be resilient and change along the way.”
Today, the organization’s free and confidential services and programs reach more than 9,000 people each year, more than 83% of whom live below the poverty level.
Despite those achievements, the organization is facing significant financial challenges, Bazik said. The nonprofit recently lost 25% of its funding for medical case management, about $200,000, from an annual budget of roughly $1.7 million, she said.
“That’s a lot of money when your budget’s only $1.7 million a year,” Bazik said. “It means I’m going to have to lay staff off. I’m going to have to reduce the amount of people available to serve people in need.”
Bazik said staffing is the largest expense for most nonprofits and the backbone of service delivery.
“They’re the people who make the difference,” she said.
Bazik said funding challenges are not isolated to one agency but ripple across the nonprofit sector, affecting organizations that often share clients and collaborate to meet community needs.
“It’s the fabric of nonprofits that are being stressed by layoffs, by closures, by lack of budget,” she said.
The anniversary and World AIDS Day commemoration were also marked by public recognition from local and state leaders.
Mayor Eddie Moran announced City Hall would be lighted red Dec. 1 as a public show of solidarity, remembrance and continued support for those affected by HIV/AIDS.
State Sen. Judy Schwank presented Co-County Wellness with a Senate citation honoring its 40th anniversary.
“This is a celebration of the many milestones and the successes we’ve been a part of through our work, as well as the roadblocks and obstacles along the way,” Bazik said. “It’s humbling work, but each and every one of us at CCWS and Berks Teens believes in our mission and the impact of what we do.”