Our Mission

Prevent HIV/AIDS in Michigan by increasing knowledge and awareness and investing public and private funds effectively.

Our History

“Given how far we have come as a society in dealing with HIV/AIDS, it is easy to forget the level of fear and stigma that has been associated with the disease and therefore what a truly brave and compassionate act it was for the founding members of the Michigan AIDS Fund to step forward. “
- Report of the Management Assistance Group, 9/30/04

The Michigan AIDS Fund (MAF) is a direct response to the devastation of the AIDS crisis. MAF was created in 1989 by a group of philanthropic leaders from the Council of Michigan Foundations (CMF), who rallied the state’s grant makers to address the AIDS epidemic across Michigan — from urban centers to rural communities. In 1993, MAF formally incorporated as a separate charitable supporting organization to CMF. MAF is also a Community Partner of the National AIDS Fund.

MAF has served as a statewide pooled resource to allow donors of all types — foundations, corporations, government and individuals — the opportunity to support community-based AIDS organizations throughout Michigan. MAF provided critical seed money for a wide variety of innovative HIV services, including case management, support groups, counseling and testing, prevention, capacity building and technical assistance. Since its inception, MAF has awarded nearly $12 million in grants and other resources.

As the epidemic evolved and changed, so has MAF. Research has led to medications that now hold AIDS at bay. Service providers have matured and broadened their funding. Government is better meeting the care needs of those infected. But one fact remains: a cure is still years away. Still, we can literally end the epidemic by stopping new HIV infections.

“The ongoing tragedy is that almost all HIV infections in this country are preventable. If we just listened to what the research has taught us; needles would be provided to drug users; condoms would be provided in prisons; kids would learn that it is OK to be gay, and no child would graduate from junior high without knowing how to protect him or herself.”
- Dr. Thomas J. Coats, Ph. D.

While HIV prevention efforts can reverse the epidemic, HIV prevention dollars represent only 5% of all federal funds for HIV/AIDS – about half of what it was just a decade ago. So in 2005, the Michigan AIDS Fund refined its mission to focus exclusively on HIV prevention in Michigan, where its expertise and limited resources can have the greatest impact.

Today, MAF invests in innovative HIV prevention programs, and also works educate, motivate and mobilize the public and policy makers to more effectively prevent the spread of the epidemic in Michigan.