The Vision
The Vision
Most HIV-related websites dedicated to the needs of those who are HIV-positive tend to be serious - and frankly a bit of a downer - as we read about health issues, treatment problems, stigma, legal issues, etc., and little else
For the founder (Brian Finch), a sense of humour is what has got him through the last 23 years of living with HIV. There is no need for debate about the role of humour and its relationship to positive health outcomes There needs to be something different out there that celebrates having fun.
PositiveLite.com is a Canadian-driven website for both those of us who are HIV-positive and our friends and supporters, irrespective of sexual orientation, gender or nationality. We tackle important issues while maintaining a "lifestyles magazine" format.
HIV-positive people in Canada are labeled with many acronyms, including PHA, PLWHIV, PWA, etc. All of these are variations of "people living with HIV or people with AIDS" and all of these define us through disease. The goal of PositiveLite.com is for readers to see themselves as whole and complete people whose lives are much more than a positive HIV diagnosis, all in plain language, featuring grass-roots personal perspectives from and for people that may not have a voice in traditional organizations. PositiveLite.com also serves as a point-of-entry for people living with HIV who are not connected, either by location or sense of comfortability. We foster and nurture participation and build capacity for people living with HIV within a modern social media context.
In Canada, and perhaps elsewhere, there is no other social media platform that brings all Canadians and others fitting our profile together in one place. Our goal is a lofty one. However our successes in reaching out to an ever-growing cricle of people are showing that our platform is not only needed, but works.
Volunteer Driven
PositiveLite.com is a privately funded website. On a small scale we do receive some revenue through advertising for site overheads. However this is truly a labour of love, and is 100% volunteer driven - from those responsible for interviews, the contributors, the editing, video editing and so forth.
If you are a business or an AIDS service organization that appreciates the work we do we ask for your support by advertising on our website.
The Serious Side
As a community, we need to support each other when it seems like life is getting far too heavy. Thus we tackle ALL issues affecting people living with HIV. This is the serious side to PositiveLite.com. Living with HIV is not as easy as everyone might think these days. It takes a lot of work and time management. Eating well, exercising, balancing a work schedule with doctors' appointments, starting new medications and maintaining a fulfilling lifestyle can be very challenging. So included in our mix are articles about these more serious subjects. For example, aging and HIV have become the new frontier. We promote the advancement of research and advocacy for those coping with the next 'great unknown'– living past middle age and well into our twilight years—taking into account the long-term effects of the virus and medications.
This is our reality. PositiveLite.com features updates and information important to us as a community, striving to both inform and entertain, while always showing that celebrating the lighter side of life—with fun, satire and laughter—can be the best medicine of all.
