Our Patrons
We are thrilled and privileged to announce that these 2 individuals have agreed to be the Patrons of HiVitality, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the health and well-being of people living with HIV.
These 2 people are not only renowned for their achievements and contributions in their respective fields, but also for their compassion and advocacy for HIV-related causes.
They have generously offered their time, expertise and influence to support our mission and vision, and to help us raise awareness and funds for our programs and services.
We are grateful for their trust and confidence in our work, and we look forward to collaborating with them in the future.
Angela
Angela was, in the early 1990s, a co-founder with Tom Matthews of the National Longterm Survivors Group charity, which later became HIVitality, reflecting the changing face of HIV over the following decades. She brings to the role of Patron her long history of commitment and concern regarding those who are living with HIV, having first encountered the issue during her time living in Canada amongst the artistic community. She has an extensive background in therapeutic interest, and, whilst working for the NHS after returning to the UK, this came into play identifying the emotional needs of a previously unnoticed group who were living with HIV without becoming ill, consequently developing appropriate service provision for support. She is delighted to be given the opportunity to deepen her support of the charity.
Chris Smith, Baron Smith of Finsbury
Chris Smith, Baron Smith of Finsbury, made history as the UK’s first MP to publicly come out as gay. He was an Islington councillor between 1978 and 1983, and MP for Islington South and Finsbury between 1983 and 2005, during which time he was also shadow secretary of state for heritage. Chris served as secretary of state for culture, media and sport from 1997 to 2001 under Tony Blair’s government, and was popular among his constituents for always being available to listen to people talk about issues. While Chris felt that being gay had no impact on his work as a politician, he regularly spoke out on issues affecting the LGBTQ community, such as the AIDS crisis, Section 28, and the forced outing of closeted public figures. In 2005, Chris Smith was the first MP to acknowledge that he was HIV positive. He was motivated to disclose his status following the announcement by Nelson Mandela that his son had died of the disease. Shortly after his disclosure, Chris was contacted by Nelson Mandela, who expressed his gratitude. We are grateful to Chris for lending his name to the patronage of HiVitality.
©Copyright. All rights reserved.
We need your consent to load the translations
We use a third-party service to translate the website content that may collect data about your activity. Please review the details and accept the service to view the translations.