San Francisco AIDS Foundation
A San Francisco–based nonprofit providing HIV prevention, sexual-health, social-support, advocacy, and community services.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
The San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) is a nonprofit HIV and AIDS service organization founded in San Francisco in 1982, during the early years of the AIDS epidemic. It began as the Kaposi's Sarcoma Research and Education Foundation, established by physician and community leaders Cleve Jones, Marcus Conant, Frank Jacobson, and Richard Keller. The organization adopted the San Francisco AIDS Foundation name in 1984. SFAF was initially an all-volunteer organization focused on delivering reliable information at a time when public knowledge about AIDS was limited and misinformation was widespread. Its first major public service was a telephone information line, initially known as the Kaposi Sarcoma or KS hotline. The hotline later became the Northern California AIDS Hotline and expanded substantially as the epidemic developed; by 1995, the organization reported receiving more than 10,000 calls per month. SFAF also worked with the San Francisco Department of Public Health and the California Department of Health Services to distribute public-health information and extend services beyond the city. During the 1980s, the foundation broadened its role from information provision into direct social services, emergency assistance, prevention education, advocacy, and support for people living with HIV or affected by AIDS. Condom promotion became a major part of its prevention work, particularly among gay men, who were frequently overlooked by mainstream public-health advertising. In 1987, SFAF supported a more targeted and sex-positive approach to condom communications, using public transit, newspapers, gay bars, bathhouses, and other community media. Its prevention materials emphasized risk reduction, condom use during anal intercourse, and avoiding activities that could transmit bodily fluids. The organization later developed a wider portfolio of sexual-health and social-support services. These have included HIV testing and prevention, assistance accessing pre-exposure prophylaxis, substance-use support through the Stonewall Project, and programs for people experiencing homelessness and for older adults. The organization has also participated in the Getting to Zero initiative, a collaborative effort aimed at reducing new HIV infections, improving outcomes for people living with HIV, and addressing HIV-related inequities. SFAF has operated as both a direct-service provider and a civic advocate. It has worked with public-health agencies, journalists, healthcare professionals, policymakers, and community organizations to improve public understanding of HIV and reduce stigma. Its programs have historically focused strongly on gay and bisexual men and other communities disproportionately affected by HIV, while the foundation has also acknowledged challenges in reaching communities of color and other underserved populations. Fundraising has included AIDS Walk San Francisco, which began in 1987 and became an important source of support for SFAF and other HIV/AIDS organizations. The walk reportedly raised more than $80 million for SFAF over its history before the event and foundation ended their relationship after the 2013 walk. In 2011, SFAF assumed responsibility for the Stop AIDS Project. In 2016, it opened Strut, a sexual-health clinic at 470 Castro Street in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood. SFAF remains an active community-based organization whose work combines prevention, treatment access, social services, peer connection, fundraising, and policy advocacy. Its public profile has included recognition from national political figures, including a 2004 tribute by Representative Nancy Pelosi that praised then-executive director Pat Christen. In February 2025, SFAF became the lead plaintiff in a federal lawsuit challenging three executive orders issued by President Donald Trump concerning diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, gender-identity policy, and federal anti-discrimination rules. The case illustrates the foundation's continuing willingness to engage in legal and policy advocacy alongside its health and social-service work.
History
The San Francisco AIDS Foundation emerged in April 1982, when Cleve Jones, Marcus Conant, Frank Jacobson, and Richard Keller created the Kaposi's Sarcoma Research and Education Foundation. The founding group brought together medical expertise and gay-community leadership at a time when AIDS was poorly understood, highly stigmatized, and increasingly urgent in San Francisco. The organization reorganized under the San Francisco AIDS Foundation name in 1984. Its earliest work was largely volunteer-led. The foundation established a telephone information service, first called the Kaposi Sarcoma or KS hotline, to provide accurate answers about the emerging epidemic. The service initially focused on Northern California, but the foundation's growing reach and reputation eventually gave it a broader national significance. By 1995, the Northern California AIDS Hotline was reportedly receiving more than 10,000 calls each month. SFAF quickly developed formal partnerships with public-health authorities. In October 1982, it began working with the San Francisco Department of Public Health to deliver AIDS education and other public services. By November, it was collaborating with the California Department of Health Services to extend information and education efforts across the state. In 1983, the foundation created a social-services department capable of providing emergency assistance to people living with AIDS and those dealing with related social and economic problems. Prevention communication became one of the foundation's most visible areas of work. SFAF promoted condom use among gay men, a population often excluded from mainstream heterosexual public-health campaigns. In 1987, advertising designer Les Pappas encouraged condom manufacturers and health officials to address gay men directly and to present condoms in a more relevant, eroticized, and affirming way. SFAF subsequently placed prevention messages on public transportation, in newspapers, and in gay bars, bathhouses, and other community media. It also spoke at professional and public conventions, engaged healthcare and government institutions, and worked with journalists to improve reporting about AIDS. The foundation's communications emphasized practical risk reduction, including condom use during anal intercourse and caution around activities involving the exchange of bodily fluids. These efforts helped normalize safer-sex practices, although the organization faced continuing difficulty reaching some non-white communities. That challenge reflected broader racial and social inequities in HIV prevention, healthcare access, and public communications. Over time, SFAF expanded beyond education and communications. Its services came to include sexual-health programs, HIV prevention, assistance obtaining pre-exposure prophylaxis, substance-use support, and social programs for people experiencing homelessness and for adults over fifty. The Stonewall Project became part of its substance-use and harm-reduction work. The 50-Plus Network, developed by Jeff Leiphart and Noah Briones and later managed by Vince Crisostomo, created opportunities for older gay men in the San Francisco area to build social connections, improve well-being, and contribute to their communities. Fundraising has supported both SFAF and other HIV/AIDS programs. AIDS Walk San Francisco began in 1987 and reportedly generated more than $80 million for SFAF over its history. The foundation also directed some proceeds to local and international HIV/AIDS organizations. The relationship ended after the 2013 walk, marking a significant change in SFAF's fundraising landscape. SFAF continued to grow through organizational partnerships and service expansion. In 2011, it took over the Stop AIDS Project. In 2016, it opened Strut, a sexual-health clinic at 470 Castro Street in the Castro neighborhood. The foundation also became a major collaborator in Getting to Zero, a multi-organization effort focused on ending new HIV transmissions, improving health outcomes, and reducing disparities. Advocacy has remained central to the foundation's identity. SFAF has promoted HIV treatment access, challenged stigma, and communicated with policymakers and the public about the needs of people living with HIV. In October 2004, Representative Nancy Pelosi publicly recognized the organization and praised then-executive director Pat Christen. In February 2025, SFAF became the lead plaintiff in San Francisco AIDS Foundation v. Trump, a lawsuit filed by Lambda Legal that challenges three Trump executive orders addressing federal DEI programs, gender-identity policy, and anti-discrimination standards. The action demonstrates how SFAF's work now extends from local health services to national legal and political advocacy.
- 2025
SFAF leads challenge to federal executive orders
[1]SFAF became the lead plaintiff in a Lambda Legal lawsuit challenging three Trump administration executive orders.
- 2016
Strut clinic opens
[1]The foundation opened a sexual-health clinic at 470 Castro Street in San Francisco.
- 2011
Stop AIDS Project transferred to SFAF
[1]SFAF took over the Stop AIDS Project as part of its prevention and community-service expansion.
- 1995
Northern California AIDS Hotline reports more than 10,000 monthly calls
[1]The hotline's reported call volume illustrated the foundation's scale as a source of epidemic information.
- 1987
AIDS Walk San Francisco begins
[1]The annual walk became a major fundraising mechanism for SFAF and other HIV/AIDS organizations.
- 1987
Targeted gay-community condom campaign expands
[1]SFAF used community media and sex-positive prevention messaging to promote condom use among gay men.
- 1984
Organization adopts San Francisco AIDS Foundation name
[1]The organization reorganized under its current name.
- 1983
Social services department created
[1]SFAF developed a social-services department offering emergency assistance to people affected by AIDS and related hardships.
- 1982
Foundation established as the Kaposi's Sarcoma Research and Education Foundation
[1]Cleve Jones, Marcus Conant, Frank Jacobson, and Richard Keller founded the organization in April as an early community response to the AIDS epidemic.
- 1982
Public-health partnerships begin
[1]The organization began working with San Francisco and California public-health agencies on AIDS education and information services.
Products and positioning
A community-rooted HIV and sexual-health nonprofit combining direct services, prevention education, harm reduction, social support, fundraising, and public advocacy, with particular historical strength in serving San Francisco's LGBTQ+ communities.
Sexual-health clinic · 2016
Strut
A sexual-health clinic opened by SFAF in 2016 at 470 Castro Street in San Francisco's Castro District. Strut represents the foundation's continuing shift from epidemic education alone toward integrated, accessible sexual-health services.
Substance-use and harm-reduction program
Stonewall Project
A substance-use support program associated with SFAF's broader harm-reduction and health-services portfolio. It reflects the foundation's effort to address factors that affect HIV risk, treatment access, and the well-being of people living with HIV.
Peer and social-support program
50-Plus Network
A program for older gay men in the San Francisco area that offers opportunities for social connection, health and wellness activities, peer support, and community contribution. It was developed by Jeff Leiphart and Noah Briones and later managed by Vince Crisostomo.
HIV information service · 1982
Northern California AIDS Hotline
SFAF's original telephone information service, first known as the Kaposi Sarcoma or KS hotline. It provided accessible information during the early epidemic and had reportedly grown to more than 10,000 calls per month by 1995.
Marketing campaigns
- 1987Gay-community condom and safer-sex campaign
San Francisco · Northern California
SFAF developed prevention advertising aimed directly at gay men, using public transit, newspapers, gay bars, bathhouses, and other community media. The campaign promoted condoms through more relevant and sex-positive messaging than mainstream heterosexual campaigns.
Outcome. The work helped make targeted safer-sex communication a central part of the foundation's public-health strategy, although SFAF continued to face difficulty reaching some communities of color.
- 1987AIDS Walk San Francisco
San Francisco Bay Area
An annual fundraising walk supporting SFAF and other HIV/AIDS organizations. The event became one of the foundation's best-known fundraising vehicles.
Outcome. The walk reportedly raised more than $80 million for SFAF over its history. The event and foundation ended their relationship after the 2013 walk.
Brand decisions
2025
Federal lawsuit challenging Trump executive ordersOtherBackground
SFAF argued that three executive orders concerning DEI programs, gender-identity policy, and anti-discrimination rules threatened interests relevant to its mission and communities.
Action taken
The foundation became the lead plaintiff in San Francisco AIDS Foundation v. Trump, filed by Lambda Legal.
Aftermath
The litigation placed SFAF at the center of a national legal dispute over federal civil-rights and inclusion policy; the final outcome is not established in the supplied material.
2016
Opening of Strut sexual-health clinicProduct launchBackground
SFAF sought to provide accessible, community-based sexual-health services in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood.
Action taken
The foundation opened Strut at 470 Castro Street.
Aftermath
Strut became a visible part of SFAF's direct sexual-health service offering.
2011
Takeover of Stop AIDS ProjectM&ABackground
SFAF expanded its prevention and community-services platform by taking responsibility for the Stop AIDS Project.
Action taken
The Stop AIDS Project was brought under SFAF's organizational responsibility.
Aftermath
The move consolidated two San Francisco HIV-prevention organizations within a larger service and advocacy infrastructure.
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