Doves of Love Honors Those Lost To HIV/AIDS, Coronavirus

SARASOTA, FL — For the past 10 years, Sarasota-based CARES Outreach Services has recognized World AIDS Day, held every year on Dec. 1, through a special exhibit or event.

This year, the nonprofit decided to change things up a bit, said Michael Kehoe, CEO and founder. In addition to honoring the lives lost to HIV and AIDS, he decided to also recognize those who have died during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

“This year, we incorporated COVID-19 into it because they’re actually twin pandemics,” he said. “I thought it would be perfect to meld the two pandemics together this year for World AIDS Day this year.”

The result is Doves of Love, an interactive community art exhibit at Selby Public Library, located at 1331 1st Street in Sarasota. Those visiting the exhibit are invited to write the names of a loved one who has died from HIV, AIDS or COVID-19 on white paper doves, Kehoe said.

The doves, which were made by National Junior Honor Society students at the Sarasota School of Arts and Sciences, are then attached to boards on display in the library’s lobby, he said. Doves of Love was first put on display Nov. 16 and will remain up through Dec. 16.

Each year, CARES features a different World AIDS Day project, he added. This year, he chose doves for their symbolic meaning.

“The reason I picked doves is because, historically and in folklore, doves carry the souls to heaven,” Kehoe said.

So far, there are more than 200 names on display at Selby Public Library. He’s hoping that there will be around 600 doves by mid-December, though he acknowledges that foot traffic at the library has slowed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We could probably reach more (with this exhibit) if it weren’t for COVID,” he said.

Kehoe launched CARES in 2010. Based out of Hedges Pharmacy, the organization primarily focuses on HIV and hepatitis C prevention and testing.

“With HIV, you don't hear of it much anymore because of all the advancements with (the drug) PrEP…to prevent the spread of the disease,” he said. “And it’s taken a backseat to COVID, but it’s still a world pandemic. There are 30,000 to 40,000 (people) newly infected every year with HIV and they normally don't know it until they take a test.”

CARES has expanded its reach over the years, as well. The organization offers the drugs needed to revive those who overdose on opioids and he’s also assisted with COVID-19 testing at Hedges Pharmacy in recent months. Kehoe has also worked with other organizations on homelessness and human trafficking initiatives.

“We’re very community focused,” he said. “But our primary focus is still HIV/AIDS. It’s our core service.”

Kehoe has been active in the Sarasota community since the early 1990s. Before landing in Florida, though, he initially thought he might become a priest and attended seminary school in the late 1970s. After that, he worked on Wall Street in the early 1980s before moving to Connecticut in 1987 with his partner at the time.

He found his way to Sarasota in 1992, which is when he learned that he had HIV. Over the years, he’s worked at local gay bars, with CAN Community Health Clinics and as an interior designer.

He was always interested in helping others, though. Ten years ago, when Chris Mottram, the owner of Hedges Pharmacy, asked him what he thought was needed most in the community, Kehoe had an immediate answer.

“A mobile unit for HIV testing,” he said. “And we opened the first HIV mobile unit in District 8 serving seven counties.”

Today, CARES no longer operates these mobile units. Instead, the nonprofit runs 14 different HIV testing sites through various community partnerships.

“We’re able to reach a lot more people,” he said. “We also offer health screenings – cholesterol, blood pressure, things like that.”

To learn more about CARES, follow the organization on Facebook.