“Every day is a gift,” says 69-year-old Ben Simmons, who has been a client of Project Open Hand for 15 years.
Ben and his partner, Steven, were diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in the early 1990’s. Ben survived long enough to benefit from the “drug cocktails” that were introduced to treat AIDS, but Steven was not so lucky and died in 1992.
“My health deteriorated really fast once I got sick,” recalls Ben. “I just happened to survive long enough and was lucky enough that the miracle drug cocktails worked for me.”
Ben and Steven first connected with Project Open Hand in the late 1980’s, when they volunteered to deliver meals to clients in the East Bay. When they became sick themselves and could no longer shop or cook, they began receiving home-delivered meals. As Ben’s health improved, he switched from meals to groceries, which he now picks up once a week at Project Open Hand in downtown Oakland.
“I get a lot of healthy food from Project Open Hand, and I’m not talking just twigs and sticks,” says Ben, who is a vegetarian. “It’s high-quality food – lots of grains and vegetables. It really gets my cooking juices and creativity flowing.”
A former nurse at Highland Hospital, Ben has been unable to work for many years because of severe neuropathy, which affects about one third of people with AIDS, causing pain and numbness in his hands and feet.
Getting nutritious groceries from Project Open Hand enables Ben to eat healthy and save money. He uses the money he saves to cover his drug co-payments, which have climbed steadily in recent years.
These days, Ben has trouble walking because of his neuropathy, but doesn’t let that stop him from getting to Project Open Hand each week.
“For me, going to Project Open Hand is a social event. It’s great seeing my friends there, and it’s something I look forward to every week.”
Every day, Project Open Hand has provides 2,500 “meals with love” to people who are battling life-threatening illnesses, such as HIV/AIDS, cancer and heart disease, as well as seniors.