Lancaster AIDS Project

Founded in 1985, the Lancaster AIDS Project was a local organization established by volunteers to assist people with HIV/AIDS in the South Central PA region. The Lancaster AIDS Project organized and coordinated the Arts Against AIDS Auction which was their annual fundraiser.

Instructions for the Silent Auction during the Arts Against AIDS 1997. 

Founded in 1985, the Lancaster AIDS Project was a local organization established by volunteers to assist people with HIV/AIDS in the South Central PA region. The Lancaster AIDS Project organized and coordinated the Arts Against AIDS Auction which was their annual fundraiser.

This is the program for Arts Against AIDS Auction 1995 program. 

Founded in 1985, the Lancaster AIDS Project was a local organization established by volunteers to assist people with HIV/AIDS in the South Central PA region. The Lancaster AIDS Project organized and coordinated the Arts Against AIDS Auction which was their annual fundraiser.

These announcements contain information about the cancelation of Arts Against AIDS 1994 and the upcoming Arts Against AIDS 1995.

Founded in 1985, the Lancaster AIDS Project was a local organization established by volunteers to assist people with HIV/AIDS in the South Central PA region. The Lancaster AIDS Project organized and coordinated the Arts Against AIDS Auction which was their annual fundraiser.

This is the invitation for the 1993 Auction. 

Crossroads Magazine was a bi-monthly local LGBTQ+ magazine created, edited, and published by Dr. Eric Selvey. The goal of Crossroads was to bring together the LGBTQ+ community of Central Pennsylvania by creating a space to showcase the efforts and talents of local LGBTQ+ organizations, people, and events, with all articles being voluntary contributions. Crossroads was published from June 1996 – October 1997.

In this First Anniversary Issue: 

• Travel Section - Rehobeth & Puerto Vallarta
• Fire from Hell...Treasures from God
• ''In Search of Missy Ether'' Short Story
• Mr. Harrisburg Contest 1997

Patricia ''Pat'' Mastandrea Sanders was a hair stylist in Boston before moving up to advertising and marketing for 300 salons across the country. One fateful day she slipped on an ice cube and hit her head. Her life changed forever. Unable to work due to memory loss, Pat decided to give her time to various AIDS/HIV advocacy groups in the Lancaster County area. Pat worked with the Lancaster AIDS Project, Betty Finney House, and American Red Cross Foundation’s yearly Oscar Party. She hand wrote hundreds of letters each year to celebrities requesting donated materials and the response she got was incredible. Pat also discusses LGBTQ in the Age of the Trump/Pence presidency.

The interview performed on March 23, 2015 is with Oral History project volunteer, Michele Metcalf and long-time LGBT activist and self-identified gay man, Phil Wenger. Wenger was born and raised in Ethiopia in a large Mennonite missionary family and returned to his family’s roots in Central Pennsylvania when he was 12. In this interview, he speaks about his coming out, his advocacy with Pride and the Harrisburg LGBT Center, and with the Lancaster AIDS Project. He goes on to speak about how all of these factors have affected his life, life path, and relationships.

Jon Johnson was born in Southern Lancaster county, Pennsylvania and lived on his family’s farm in his early life. Charles (Charlie) Maser was born in Brownstown in Lancaster County Pennsylvania. Jon spent most of his life in Pennsylvania. He went to the York Academy of Arts in York, Pennsylvania and then worked in the Bon Ton department store doing store displays and visual merchandising. Charlie attended dental school in Washington D.C. and then enlisted in the Air Force. He was stationed in Charleston, North Carolina and then later on in Germany, and finally in Madrid. Jon and Charlie met in July of 1975 at a bar called the Fiddler when they were introduced through a mutual friend. In this interview they discuss what it was like to come out in rural Pennsylvania in the 70’s and the challenges of living in an area that was very religious. Charlie also discusses his experience being gay in the military and how surprisingly he did not face much prejudice as a result of his sexuality, especially while in Europe. The couple also reflects on the difficulty of losing friends to AIDS in the 80’s and the type of activism they became involved with during that crisis. In conclusion, Jon and Charlie express that they felt lucky that they had not faced a lot of prejudice in their lives, because of their relationship, and discuss how they feel that there are not a lot of differences between their relationship and a relationship between a straight couple.

Patricia “Pat” Saunders grew up in the suburbs of Boston, where she became a hairdresser. After Saunders married, she and her family moved to Lancaster, PA, but later she moved back to Boston until moving to New York City for her hairdressing firm. She rose in the ranks of the company, eventually taking the lead in marketing and PR for 300 salons. One night at work she slipped on an ice cube and sustained a severe head injury, impacting her mobility and faculties. She then moved from New York City to New Jersey, and then to back to the Central Pennsylvania area.

Saunders had two friends who passed away from AIDS. Seeing the seriousness of the disease in the Central PA area, and her personal connection to it, Saunders began working for various non-profit organizations committed to supporting people with HIV/AIDS and raising awareness for the disease. She worked for the American Red Cross, Art Against AIDS/Lancaster AIDS Project, and The Betty Finney House. Saunders helped these organizations with fundraising, organizing events, and writing any letters to various celebrities to collect items for silent auctions.

Created by Lorraine Kujawa, Cindy Mitzel, Mary Nancarrow, and several others in 1983, the Lavender Letter Newsletter was a calendar of events for, by, and about lesbian women to create community in the Central Pennsylvania area. The newsletter was distributed monthly until the mid-2000s. 

Created by Lorraine Kujawa, Cindy Mitzel, Mary Nancarrow, and several others in 1983, the Lavender Letter Newsletter was a calendar of events for, by, and about lesbian women to create community in the Central Pennsylvania area. The newsletter was distributed monthly until the mid-2000s.