My name is Kathleen and I live in Michigan in the US. I was married to a man with hemophilia A back in the 1980s when HIV was in the blood supply. Nobody knew that this was such a big problem for people with bleeding disorders and their families. I learned this lesson in the most difficult way. My husband and I tested HIV positive in 1984, just after our daughter was born. Although she was born a carrier of hemophilia, she remained free from HIV. This is when I became an activist for awareness and education for both HIV and bleeding disorders. I got involved on the board of directors for the National Hemophilia Foundation and also served on NAPWA, the National Association of People With AIDS. During President Clinton’s administration I served on his HIV/AIDS Advisory Council for 5 years. My husband died when my daughter was only 8 years old and I raised her as a single parent. When she reached puberty and had many bleeding problems, further research showed that she had another rare type of bleeding disorder called PAI 1. I felt I had to do something more to educate the larger population about these two health issues. In 1999 I started the Stitches Doll Project (www.stitchesdollproject.org) for women to tell their stories in order to heal themselves and educate others. This is my life’s work. We can and must be messengers to everyone else. This community is my family and I will continue to serve.