AIDS centre keeps Sexton's memory alive
A shelter for people with HIV and AIDS has opened in St. John's, in memory of one of Newfoundland's most beloved entertainers.
The Tommy Sexton Centre was officially opened Friday.
"May his memory remind us never to be stingy with our understanding and our compassion," said his mother Sara Sexton, whose family spearheaded a campaign to build the centre.
Tommy Sexon was only 36 when he died of AIDS in 1993.
The comic— who first earned fame in Codco's theatrical productions— was also the first well-known person in the province to disclose he had the disease.
"There is still a huge stigma attached to HIV and AIDS, and I think when Tommy came out and said that he was a homosexual and said that he was dying of AIDS, it put a human face to it," his sister, film producer Mary Sexton, told CBC News recently.
She noted that the characters Sexton developed for the Wonderful Grand Band— a TV phenomenon in the early 1980s— and Codco's TV incarnation helped manyNewfoundlanders overcome their homophobia and fear of AIDS.
"It put a face [on it], that Nanny Hynes was sick," she said referring to Sexton's caricature of a mumbling but lovable grandmother.
"It wasn't just some queer fellow dowtown that was sick, it was someone that we loved."
Since 1985, 240 people in Newfoundland and Labrador have tested positive for HIV, with more than 75 deaths attributed to AIDS.
About 125 people are now living with HIV or AIDS.
The $1.5-million complex, built in the east end neighbourhood of Pleasantville, has six apartments and four shelter beds, and will also house a needle exchange program and the provincial AIDS Committee.
Susan Ralph, who chairs the AIDS Committee, said the shelter will help people have a better life.
"We'll now offer affordable, accessible, supportive and healthy living accommodations to persons living with HIV and AIDS, and at high-risk for HIV infection," she said.
Robyn Pardy wishes she had a place like this when she was diagnosed several years ago.
"I found myself in a situation that was abusive and had to leave with two children in tow," said Pardy.
Sexton's family has organized an annual charity event to raise money for the centre.
Residents will be able to move into the Tommy Sexton Centre soon, once final refurbishments are made. Organizers said there is already a waiting list for accommodations.