Thirty-five years is a long time to stand beside a community. For CAN Community Health, it began with a simple belief: people living with HIV deserved access to care and a community that would stand beside them.
In 1991, Susan Terry and Dr. Jeffrey Stall founded what was then known as Comprehensive Care Clinic. What started as a small effort to provide care and support grew into Community AIDS Network and, eventually, CAN Community Health.
The name may have changed over the years. The commitment behind it hasn’t.
Today, CAN has grown into a national network providing comprehensive healthcare, prevention, support and education. Its services have expanded beyond HIV care to include primary care, dental care, behavioral health, pharmacy services, testing, PrEP/DoxyPEP, Hepatitis C services and more.
Yet an anniversary like this isn’t simply about counting years. It’s about remembering the people who filled them.
CAN’s 35-year story includes its founders and early advocates, along with the patients, providers, staff and community partners who have continued to shape the organization and its work. Each has played a part in taking an idea that began in 1991 and helping it grow into what CAN is today.
That history will take center stage this World AIDS Day season with music, community and some very recognizable names.
CAN will commemorate its 35th anniversary with the Red Note Concert, a two-night event featuring Clay Aiken, André De Shields and Seth Rudetsky. The concert series comes to Fort Lauderdale on Sunday, November 29, followed by Tampa on Tuesday, December 1st, 2026.
It’s an opportunity to come together, but also to remember why CAN came together in the first place.
Thirty-five years ago, it started with people who believed care and community belonged side by side. Thirty-five years later, they still do.
Fort Lauderdale on Sunday, November 29th, 2026
Tampa on Tuesday, December 1st, 2026
