Regional AIDS Interfaith Network

MISSION

RAIN engages the community to transform lives and promote respect and dignity for all people touched by HIV through compassionate care, education and leadership development.

VISION

RAIN will be recognized as a model for providing compassionate care and a leader for innovative and effective AIDS work that engages a diverse network of volunteers committed to putting faith in to action.

We will integrate the wisdom and voices of those infected with HIV/AIDS in the planning and delivery of our services.

We will be a leader and educator among our health and human service organizations as well as faith-based and community groups, partnering with them on initiatives and promoting dialogue that seriously examines and deals with the spiritual and social justice issues connected with HIV/AIDS.

As a result of our work, we will inspire and empower more people to live, open more minds and help break stigma of HIV/AIDS regionally, nationally and internationally.

HISTORY

Rev. Deborah Warren, along with a group of volunteers, sought a way to engage the faith community in addressing the challenges presented by HIV/AIDS and founded RAIN in 1992. In the early 1990's there was stigma, fear and misinformation about the disease. The goal of RAIN, at the time, was to begin changing attitudes while at the same time helping people dying with AIDS to not die alone.

Since then, RAIN's focus has shifted from caring for people dying with AIDS to providing compassionate care for individuals living with HIV/AIDS. RAIN continues to educate and advocate for all people with HIV/AIDS and to work for greater understanding of HIV and how it affects all people regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation. RAIN embraces all people who are living with HIV/AIDS.

SInce 1992, RAIN has: • Provided more than 150,000 hours of service to over 1,100 persons with HIV and AIDS and their loved ones and trained over 5,000 volunteers. • Provided HIV/AIDS prevention education and awareness programs to more than 50,000 people. • Coordinated programs in over 100 congregations from 20 different denominations and faith traditions, in13 counties in North and South Carolina.

RAIN is widely recognized for its unique model and expertise in working with persons living with HIV/AIDS and with volunteers from within the faith community. RAIN has received a number of national and state awards for accomplishments and innovative practices.

• In November 2006, RAIN's President & CEO, Rev. Deborah Warren, received the "Local Hero" award from Bank of America.
• Search for Common Ground chose RAIN for its Community Peace-Building Award in 2004. Search for Common Ground is the largest non-governmental organization in the world solely dedicated to conflict prevention and resolution.
• RAIN was a Ford Foundation 2002 "Leadership for a Changing World" award winner and featured in the research of New York University / Wagner Research Center for Leadership in Action in "How North Carolina's Religious Congregations Are Building A Volunteer Network To Sustain People With HIV/AIDS".
• RAIN was selected as a Local Initiative Funding Partner by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 2001 and awarded a multi-year grant for innovative work with persons with HIV/AIDS.
• RAIN was chosen for the Governor's World AIDS Day Volunteer Service Award in 1999 and 2006.
• Individual RAIN volunteers and staff members have received several awards including the National AIDS Fund "Caring Counts" Award and the NC Governor's Volunteer Appreciation Award for Distinguished Community Service.