Callen-Lorde's main lobby |
A Callen-Lorde exam room |
Our Mission
Callen-Lorde Community Health Center provides sensitive, quality health care and related services primarily to New York's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities—in all their diversity—regardless of ability to pay. To further this mission, Callen-Lorde promotes health education and wellness and advocates for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender health issues.
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Our History
Callen-Lorde's grassroots heritage dates back over 40 years to the St. Mark's Community Clinic and the Gay Men's Health Project, two volunteer-based clinics that provided screening and treatment for sexually-transmitted diseases. These clinics merged in 1983 to form Community Health Project, a mostly volunteer-staffed, episodic care program housing the nation's first community-based HIV clinic.
In 1998, Community Health Project moved to a new location and changed its name to Callen-Lorde Community Health Center. Located in Manhattan’s Chelsea district and sprawling over 27,000-square feet, Callen-Lorde is a modern, state-of-the-art health center—and remains the New York metropolitan area’s only facility targeting the healthcare needs of the LGBT communities and people living with HIV/AIDS.
Our Inspiration
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Michael Callen
(1955-1993) |
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Audre Lorde
(1934-1992) |
| Michael Callen was born in Rising Sun, Indiana, and began his career as a successful composer and singer. In 1982, he was diagnosed with AIDS (then known as Gay-Related Immune Deficiency) and quickly became a leader in the response to the growing epidemic. In 1985, he became a founding member of the People with AIDS Coalition, the first organization to spring from the AIDS Self-Empowerment movement. As an leading authority in the community, Michael was called to testify before the President’s Commission on AIDS and both houses of the United States Congress. In 1990, Michael chronicled the stories of long-term survivors in his book Surviving AIDS. Michael continued his work in the community and in music until his death at age 38. He is survived by his partner, Richard Dworkin.
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The daughter of Caribbean immigrants, Audre Lorde was born in New York City and wrote her first poem at age twelve. In the 1950s while at Hunter College, Audre worked as a librarian and educator and became a leader in the early lesbian activist community in Greenwich Village. Her poetry was published regularly throughout the 1960s and 70s and gained wide recognition with the publication of her book The Cancer Journals in 1980, which chronicled her experience with breast cancer. In this groundbreaking work, she examined her own fears, anger, and ultimately, her strength and hope. Audre was named New York State’s Poet Laureate in 1991, a post she retained until her death at age 58, after a 14-year struggle with breast cancer. She is survived by her children, Elizabeth and Jonathan, and her partner, Dr. Gloria Joseph. |
Board of Directors
Claudia Slacik, Co-chair
JPMorgan Chase Treasury & Securities Services
Chief Financial Officer |
Michael Bayer, Co-chair
Cohn & Wolfe
Executive Vice President |
Elisabeth R. Benjamin, MSPH, JD
Community Service Society
Vice President of Health Initiatives |
Krisczar Bungay, MD
Physician |
Daniel S. Dokos, JD
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP
Partner |
Darren Henault
Darren Henault Interiors
President |
Elizabeth Lorde-Rollins, MD
Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center
Assistant Professor |
Carlos Riobo, PhD
Columbia University
Professor, Barnard College |
David Sandman, PhD
New York State Health Foundation
Senior Vice President |
Karen Sauvigne
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Director of Special Projects, Geriatrics & Palliative Medicine |
Tom Viola
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS
Executive Director |
