Press Releases 2024

The Campbell Foundation Awards $42,000 in “Holiday Hug” Grants to Florida Organizations Serving the HIV/AIDS Community

Dec. 16, 2024 --Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – The Campbell Foundation’s 2024 “Holiday Hugs” grants deliver $3,000 each to 14 Florida nonprofits serving people living with HIV/AIDS, offering flexible, end‑of‑year support at a time when many organizations face budget strain. Leaders from groups including Big Bend Cares, EPIC/Empath Health, and Poverello emphasized that the funds help provide food, holiday necessities, and emotional support that other funding sources don’t cover. Four organizations — Broward House, Latinos Salud, Pride Center, and SunServe — will see their grants doubled through Florida AIDS Walk matching funds. The Campbell Foundation, approaching its 30th anniversary in 2025, has awarded more than $12 million in research grants and $1.5 million in direct support since its founding.

Campbell Foundation Provides Emergency Relief Grants

Following Back-to-Back Hurricanes

Oct. 2024 -- Fort Lauderdale, Fla. -- The Campbell Foundation has awarded two $5,000 Emergency Relief Grants in response to the destructive hurricanes that struck Florida and North Carolina. Funding was directed to The McGregor Clinic in Fort Myers, FL, which continues to deliver essential wrap‑around care for people living with HIV/AIDS, and to Loving Food Resources in Asheville, NC, which is expanding food and support services across 18 counties in Western North Carolina through its network of regional partners. Although the Foundation’s core mission centers on HIV/AIDS research, these grants were fast‑tracked to meet urgent community needs following the storms. The Foundation extends its gratitude to the teams working tirelessly to support the physical and mental well‑being of their communities during this challenging period.

Campbell Foundation Funds Research
Aimed at Unearthing Hidden HIV Cells

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – Sept. 13, 2024 -- The Campbell Foundation has awarded $80,000 to Fatah Kashanchi, Ph.D., of George Mason University to advance a promising new strategy for identifying hidden HIV reservoir cells. Kashanchi and co‑investigator Ryan Flynn, MD, are exploring whether HIV glycoRNA—short, sugar‑coated viral RNAs found on the surface of infected cells—can serve as a reliable marker to pinpoint the cells that allow HIV to persist despite treatment. Kashanchi’s team has shown that HIV‑infected cells continually produce short, non‑coding RNAs even when patients are on antiretroviral therapy. Their recent discovery that these RNAs become glycosylated and embedded within infected cell organelles suggests a new way to detect—and ultimately target—reservoir cells for future gene‑editing approaches aimed at a cure. Executive Director Ken Rapkin says the Foundation invests in early‑stage ideas with high potential. “Identifying HIV‑infected cells is the holy grail of HIV research, and our peer review board believes this work shows real promise.”

Combating HIV/AIDS Across South Florida

Campbell Foundation Awards Grants to UM, FIU and FAU

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL, July 23, 2024 –The Campbell Foundation has awarded three $25,000 fast‑track grants to researchers at the University of Miami, Florida International University and Florida Atlantic University, backing innovative HIV work happening across South Florida — one of the nation’s hardest‑hit regions.

The grants support three distinct fronts in the fight against HIV/AIDS:

long‑acting prevention — University of Miami scientist Sebastian P. Fuchs, Ph.D., is developing a one‑shot AAV‑based immunization designed to deliver potent anti‑HIV antibodies and provide years of protection or sustained therapeutic pressure without daily medication.
nanogel‑based treatment — FIU researcher Arti Vashist, Ph.D., is advancing patented bio‑polymeric nanogels that can both deliver HIV therapies and trace the virus using their natural fluorescence, opening new possibilities for targeted treatment and improved detection.
rapid home testing — FAU professor Waseem Asghar, Ph.D., is building a low‑cost, disposable handheld device capable of detecting HIV‑1 within 30 minutes — including during the earliest infection window — with fully automated processing from sample to result.

Executive Director Ken Rapkin said the Foundation’s fast‑track grants are designed to accelerate promising local research at a time when South Florida remains an epicenter of the epidemic.