Lifestyle

Driving Change and Empowering Communities: The Vision Behind Hope & Help

Published

1 year ago

October 25, 2024

Image by Kyle Dowdy

The city of Orlando is diverse and vibrant, with a strong sense of community that is evident at every gathering and within the core values of community support organizations. One such organization, Hope & Help, has been supporting the health and well-being of the Orlando community since 1988. Standing as a shining example of exemplary care for people living with AIDS and HIV, robust resources and education, prevention, and treatment, the team at Hope & Help has found a home in The City Beautiful.

In 2021, reports showed that there were over 14,000 people in the Orlando area living with HIV. Hope & Help has been meeting the needs of the Central Florida population for nearly three decades, helping fight persistent stigmas and working toward a world in the near future free of HIV and AIDS.

A beautiful beginning

The 1980s and early 1990s were marked by some of the darkest days of the AIDS epidemic. By 1988, 46,000 Americans had died of AIDS.

Due in part to the rampant stigma that surrounded those with HIV and AIDS and a lack of comprehensive medical care for patients, many of those with AIDS were cared for by their community. The act of one’s village coming together birthed many organizations, such as Friends In Deed and GMHC, dedicated to serving the communities most affected by HIV and AIDS.

Hope & Help’s origin story has followed the same community-orientated trajectory. Formed in 1988 by a group of friends who were caring for someone close to them with AIDS, Hope & Help has grown to become one of the most comprehensive HIV/AIDS and STI service organizations in Florida.

Today, Hope & Help offers preventative services, education and outreach, medical services, and support for those most affected by HIV and AIDS in Central Florida. With Florida remaining a state with one of the highest rates of HIV infections in the United States, the need for what Hope & Help provides remains great.

The stigma that persists

According to Lisa Barr, Hope & Help’s Executive Director, fighting the stigma that still surrounds HIV and AIDS is the main job of her and her team. By combatting misinformation and stereotypes, incredible care and support for the community can follow.

“Stigma is the real disease that we are battling constantly,” explains Barr. “Years of medical inaccuracies, societal beliefs, and cultural factors have allowed stigmas to persist.”

Many of us still remember the early days of the AIDS epidemic, where misinformation and fear-mongering ran rampant. Turning the page on such a dark time is the core of education programs built by organizations like Hope & Help. With a wealth of information available on everything from PrEP — which offers significant protection from HIV — to mental health concerns, Hope & Help is not just talking the education talk but walking the walk, breaking age-old stigmas along the way.

Driving change with one’s village

The community aspect of Hope & Help’s mission is the force that keeps their team working hard and striving to exceed expectations. “We’re committed to creating wellness, event, and support opportunities for everyone,” says Barr. “No matter where you come from, who you are or want to be, or what you believe, we have a place for you.”

This “come as you are” ethos has helped Hope & Help provide services for thousands of people in Central Florida since its inception. Barr and her team operate under the belief that healthcare is a basic human right that should be accessible to all, which is why their programs and health services are curated to benefit all members of the Central Florida communities.

In addition, Hope & Help has partnered with other local organizations to raise funds for causes that benefit communities most affected by HIV and AIDS. Its participation in community events — such as the upcoming A Walk for Change — has been instrumental in giving the Central Florida community access to the best in preventative care and support.

The impact of community and group support for those living with HIV and AIDS cannot be overstated. Studies have shown that outcomes can be improved for those in communities most impacted by HIV and AIDS when they are given access to strong support groups and community resources.

However, the impact of organizations like Hope & Help extends far beyond clinic walls or circled chairs in group meetings. When the community knows there is a place of acceptance and caring available to them, it helps strengthen the bonds of one’s village. As organizations like Hope & Help continue to work towards building a healthier, more informed community, the vision of empowering future generations and eliminating HIV and AIDS becomes clearer.

The work to eliminate stigmas, provide a strong sense of community, and eventually end HIV and AIDS continues in Central Florida. Hope & Help stands as a testament to the power of community-driven healthcare to improve outcomes and better overall wellness.

Lifestyle

The Message Women Need Today: Cathi Carrier’s Mission to Bring Back Self-Worth

Published

11 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Michelle Langton

Many women spend years quietly stepping out of the frame, avoiding cameras, hiding behind filters, or brushing off compliments because they no longer recognize the person staring back at them. It is not vanity that drives those moments; it’s a deeper feeling of slipping away from yourself. That emotional weight is something Cathi Carrier has witnessed for more than three decades, and it’s what shaped the mission behind Purely Bella.

Cathi didn’t build her career in a boardroom. She built it in a treatment room, one client at a time, listening to stories that rarely make it into conversations about skincare. Women would sit down and immediately apologize for their appearance, convinced they were “too late” to take care of themselves. What she saw instead were women who had given so much to others that they had forgotten how to give to themselves.

Her understanding didn’t come from textbooks. It began when she was a teenager struggling with acne that felt bigger than a skin issue; it affected her confidence, her social life, and even the way she carried herself. That experience gave her empathy long before she had professional expertise. She knew what it meant to feel uncomfortable in your own skin, and she never forgot it.

In her treatment room, skincare became something deeper than cleansing and moisturizers. It became a place where women were welcomed without judgment, where they could talk openly, exhale, and feel seen. Over the years, she learned that skin reflects far more than age or stress. It reflects how much space a woman has allowed herself to take up in her own life.

Stories like Sara’s stayed with her. Sara, a retired schoolteacher, walked in with her shoulders rounded and her spirit dulled. She apologized repeatedly for her skin, barely making eye contact. Carrier designed a simple treatment plan, but the real change came from the conversations, the consistency, and the small moments where Sara started to reconnect with herself. Months later, Sara hugged her and said she finally felt like herself again. That transformation, skin healing paired with emotional renewal, is what convinced Carrier that skincare can be a form of healing when done with intention.

Still, she reached a limit. Her treatment room could only help one woman at a time. The desire to create a greater impact pushed her to start Purely Bella, a brand built to carry her philosophy beyond the walls of her spa. The transition wasn’t glamorous. She had to learn manufacturing, sourcing, regulations, and everything in between. But she stayed focused on real women and real results, clean formulations that worked, without the fear-based marketing the industry often leans on.

Purely Bella’s mission is rooted in a simple promise: you don’t need to turn back time to feel beautiful. You need to move forward with confidence and grace, knowing your best self is not behind you. Cathi believes this deeply. She speaks often about how a morning skincare routine is not just about products, it’s a daily choice to care for yourself, a reminder that you matter.

Her mission is also a response to the pressures women absorb from the world around them. Society is quick to tell women their value fades with every birthday. Cathi rejects that entirely. She wants daughters to grow up watching their mothers feel proud in photos, not hide from them. She wants women to recognize that aging is not the enemy; the real enemy is the culture that tells them to shrink as they grow older.

In a crowded beauty landscape, Cathi Carrier is not asking women to chase perfection. She is inviting them to remember who they are, and to step back into the frame with confidence.