Aloysius Home

Aloysius Home is the housing division of Friends For Life. It was founded in 1992 as a place for persons with HIV/AIDS who had nowhere to go. When Aloysius Home first opened, many people thought of it as a place where people with AIDS went to die. It has become a place where people with AIDS go to live.

Through the years, the housing services provided by the Aloysius Home division have included transitional housing and permanent supportive housing. In 1999, Aloysius Home merged with Friends For Life AIDS Resource Center to form Friends For Life Corporation and now provides permanent housing in the Shelter Plus Care program.

Shelter Plus Care

A 16-unit apartment building in Midtown Memphis offers permanent supportive housing for persons living with HIV/AIDS who are homeless and capable of independent living. The rent-subsidized apartments are provided along with intensive case management and all other necessary supportive services. The housing program is funded by Housing and Urban Development and the City of Memphis.

A generous grant from the Plough Foundation provided $225,000 to conduct renovations to the Shelter Plus Care apartment building.

Read about "One Man's Climb to a Brighter Future."

Short Term Rent Mortgage and Utility Assistance Program (STRMU)

The Short Term Rent Mortgage and Utility Assistance Program (STRMU) is funded by the City of Memphis with federal HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for Persons with HIV/AIDS) dollars.  This program provides assistance to persons living with HIV/AIDS who live in DeSoto, Tate, Tunica and Marshall counties in Mississippi and Crittenden county in Arkansas. Eligible individuals may receive assistance for rent, mortgage and/or utilities for up to 21 weeks during a calendar year.

Tenant Based Rental Assistance

Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) makes housing, located on scattered sites in different neighborhoods, available to individuals and families for a period of up to three years through a subsidized housing voucher. Approximately 56 units of TBRA housing are made available to individuals and families with children living in Shelby, Fayette and Tipton counties in Tennessee; Crittenden county in Arkansas and Desoto, Marshall, Tate and Tunica counties in Mississippi.

Case managers and clients identify units in different areas of the city that fit the special needs of persons with AIDS, including apartments specially designed for wheelchair accessibility. The TBRA program allows a family or individual to choose the area in which they would like to live. Participants pay no more than 30 percent of the household income for rent.

Families and individuals work with a case manager to develop a housing plan in order to identify barriers that have kept them from successfully maintaining permanent housing. Case managers provide intensive supportive services to the tenants in order to improve living skills and increase the income level of families and individuals. Families and individuals are also assisted with accessing all mainstream resources for which they may be eligible.

Representative Payee Services

Friends For Life has been approved by the Social Security Administration to provide Representative Payee services for persons with special needs. 

Some individuals may have difficulties managing their SSI or disability income.  These difficulties could result from problems with alcohol or drug issues, mental illness or medical complications as result of their HIV illness.  Some individuals may have friends or family members who are misusing their SSI/SSD funds.

Friends For Life will directly receive these SSI/SSD funds and assist the individual with paying bills, saving money and allocating a spending allowance.

Please contact Friends For Life for more information at 901.272.0855.