Moved by Councillor Worling, seconded by the
Chair (the Lord Mayor) -
It is resolved that:
(A)
Council
note:
(i)
the Bobby
Goldsmith Foundation (BGF) is Australia's longest running HIV charity. It was
founded in July 1984 to provide community-based care and practical, emotional
and financial support to people living with HIV-AIDS in New South Wales and
South Australia;
(ii)
BGF is
the only not-for-profit in Australia providing frontline services and support
to people living with HIV no matter their age, race, ethnicity or gender;
(iii)
almost
30,000 people are living with HIV in Australia and 50 per cent of people living
with HIV live below the poverty line;
(iv)
the
foundation’s namesake, Bobby Goldsmith, was born in Hurstville, Sydney, on 8
March 1946. Known as Robert to his family, and ‘Bob’ or ‘Bobby’ to his
colleagues and friends, Goldsmith was a charming and open person with an
excellent sense of humour;
(v)
Goldsmith
was a keen recreational swimmer who, at the inaugural Gay Games in San
Francisco in 1982, won 17 of the Australian team’s 21 medals: four Gold, 11
Silver and two Bronze;
(vi)
Goldsmith
contracted the human immunodeficiency virus knows as AIDS in the early 80s
and by 1983, he was terminally ill;
(vii)
Goldsmith
died of acquired immune deficiency syndrome on 18 June 1984. He died with
dignity, at his home in Surry Hills, where he wanted to be. His was the first
publicly acknowledged HIV-AIDS death in New South Wales and he was the third
Australian to die from AIDS-related illness;
(viii)
during
the last months of his life, Bobby was cared for by a group of close friends
who provided practical, emotional and financial support;
(ix)
on the
night of his death, 18 June 1984, his friends met at the Midnight Shift and
decided to place the money they had raised for his care into a fund that would
help the many people living with HIV/AIDS who would need care and support;
(x)
this
was the beginning of the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation, which quickly became known
as BGF;
(xi)
early
funds were directed to supporting an AIDS Home Support Service, which was
subsequently formalised as Community Support Network, an organisation that
provided practical support and home care;
(xii)
BGF was
a founding member of the AIDS Council of NSW (ACON), established in 1985 to
coordinate the community’s response to HIV/AIDS;
(xiii)
also in
1985, BGF assisted in funding ACON’s 'Rubba Me', Australia’s first community
originated safe-sex campaign after the NSW Government withdrew its support;
(xiv)
BGF was
subsequently limited to raising and directing funds to providing care and
support after it gained charitable status;
(xv)
BGF is
currently an affiliate member of the Australian Federation of AIDS
Organisations, the National Association of People With HIV
Australia, and the Australasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and
Sexual Health Medicine;
(xvi)
BGF has
received over $26,000 in cash support and nearly $10,000 value in kind support
from the City since 2014. This includes a Quick Response Grant for $4,180 for a
series of workshops in Surry Hills using the creative process of art-making to
improve and enhance the physical, mental and emotional well-being of people
living with HIV and venue support for fundraisers;
(xvii)
BGF is
committed to supporting the NSW Health strategy of elimination of the
transmission of HIV with a focus on prevention, testing, treatment and reducing
stigma in identified priority populations such as men who have sex with men
(MSM), Indigenous population, sex workers and their clients, people who inject
drugs and sexual partners of priority populations; and
(xviii)
in
2023, BGF was able to support 650 clients across more than 11,000 interactions.
This equates to more than 15,000 hours of community support delivered in
people's homes and in their communities by dedicated community support workers;
and
(B)
the
Lord Mayor be requested to write to the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation to
congratulate them for 40 years of support to people living with HIV and
acknowledge that BGF is the longest running organisation in Australia
exclusively committed to supporting people living with HIV and AIDS.
Carried unanimously.
X099886