Gil Kudrin

Gil Kudrin was born in 1958 in Lorain, Ohio. As a young gay man he found his rust-belt hometown surprisingly accepting. Kudrin moved to Lakewood, Ohio in his twenties where he found a thriving gay community. He contracted HIV in the mid-seventies before anyone knew what it was, and as an employee of Lakewood Hospital was in a unique position to watch the epidemic unfold. Kudrin got onto AZT (the first drug for AIDS) in the early-eighties and was lucky to have no adverse side-effects and not develop a resistance. He volunteered at the Living Room's crisis hotline and spent time taking care of people with AIDS who didn't have any support. In 1990 he began to work with Nightsweats & T-cells a garment company with the original purpose putting out strong messages about AIDS and providing a place for people with AIDS to work. This opportunity lead Kudrin to work with the groups like Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the Ryan White Planning Council, and Community-Based Dental Partnership Program.
In his interview Kudrin talks about growing up in Lorain, his awareness of his sexuality, and Cleveland's gay community. He discusses working at Lakewood Hospital, contracting HIV, and the process of learning about the disease. Kudrin shares Lakewood Hospital's response to the growing AIDS epidemic, his volunteerism during this time, and traveling to Canada to bring back medications. He describes the founding of Nightsweats & T-cells, selling t-shirts in New York City, and how they became involved with Broadway Cares. He concludes his interview by talking about his survival, the work of Nightsweats & T-cells over the years, and the AIDS crisis today.
Ohio Memory: ohiomemory.org...