TAP History

In the early years of the AIDS epidemic people with HIV/AIDS were facing a significant housing crisis and many were finding themselves homeless with no where to turn. The tremendous stigma attached to AIDS was resulting in loss of housing and eviction for many. Also, rapidly declining health led to a loss of income and an inability to continue to pay for housing cost. At the time there were few housing options and services available to people with HIV/AIDS.

In 1991, a group of concerned advocates, service providers, and others recognized that something had to be done to create safe, affordable and appropriate housing opportunities for people living with HIV/AIDS and the AIDS Housing Corporation (AHC) was born.

AHC’s mission statement was: To facilitate the development of affordable supportive housing options for people living with HIV/AIDS and other disabilities that maximize independence and dignity.

Over the next 18 years AHC worked to increase access and reduce barriers to housing for people with HIV/AIDS. Through our advocacy work we helped ensure sound public policy initiatives and funding levels that could address unmet housing needs. Our technical assistance (TA) services helped create over 40 AIDS housing programs, more than 1,200 units of housing for people living with HIV/AIDS in Massachusetts and New England. Over those years Victory Programs was a constant partner to AHC through all of this work.

On July 1, 2009 AHC formally merged with Victory Programs to become Victory Programs’ Technical Assistance Program or TAP. Today, the mission and spirit of AHC lives on at Victory Programs and its TAP program.

TAP provides a wide range of services to help create and maintain HIV/AIDS housing programs and services and ensure that providers are meeting housing needs effective and efficient ways. Originally created to serve the Boston area, over the years our service area has grown to include all six New England States as well as New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia. We work directly with housing and services providers, funders and communities throughout our service area. Victory Programs and the TAP look forward to continuing the work to end homelessness for people living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic conditions.

TAP is one of 18 programs currently under the Victory Programs umbrella of services.