Lambda House
History
Lambda House was a residence founded in January, 1987 for people living with HIV/AIDS by community leader Joe Brady. The home was open to people of all gender identities and sexual orientations. According to Brady, only half of the home's clients were gay. [1]
Lynn Reynolds, residential counselor at the home, called the space "A Halfway House to Death."[1:1]
An independent living facility for those who lacked the resources to live elsewhere, and called "A Halfway House to Death," though not a place to die, by Lenn Reynolds, a residential counselor for the project. Pikes Peak Hospice Inc. would then take over care either in their facility or by visiting private residences. [1:2]
The space was created because most people with HIV at the time lost their jobs and health insurance due to coworkers' fear of contamination. This would leave people with medical bills in the tens of thousands. As such, they'd often end up living with friends, according to a public health nurse, who also added: "Chronic illness adds a great amount of stress to relationships, and if it is not strong enough, it can end the friendship."[1:3]
The location of the house was kept secret to protect against bigotry and hate crimes, but when news of the house was made public, they received an outpouring of volunteer support and donations. Nineteen volunteers helped renovate the first house, which could house four people, and the second house could house eight people. By December, 1986, twelve people were already waiting to move in. [1:4]
Unfortunately, due to lack of city support and funding, services waned. Administrator Debbie Grover resigned in 1988 after working unpaid for a year and a half, which occurred around the same time that Southern Colorado AIDS Project lost its free office in the Myron Stratton home, marking a particularly difficult time for those with HIV in Colorado Springs. [2]
The house was operating as late as 1993, when Kappa Alpha Theta at Colorado College held a food drive for the home. [3]
Photos
Questions
References
Halfway house to death to shelter victims of AIDS; Springs sanctuary built to comfort victims (1986-12-06). PPLD Digital Collections, accessed 17/12/2025, https://digitalcollections.ppld.org/nodes/view/1003900 ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
Cotten, Terri. “AIDS Apathy Blamed for Wane in Local Services; Lambda House Administrator Quits, S-CAP Loses Free Office.” Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph, Colorado Springs, CO, 25 July 1988, PPLD Digital Collections, p. A 1:5, https://digitalcollections.ppld.org/nodes/view/442531. ↩︎
Salazar, Alex. “Greek Not in the Corner.” The Catalyst Sept. 10, 1993-May 13, 1994, 8 Oct. 1993, p. 94. Internet Archive, http://archive.org/details/catalystsept10193435colo. ↩︎