About
Times Have Changed, but Our Mission Continues
When Hyacinth, New Jersey’s largest and first HIV service provider, opened its doors in 1985, our mission was to help people dying of HIV/AIDS do so with dignity and support. What a difference 40 years makes!
Today, because of welcome advances in medical treatment and what scientists know about HIV, we’re helping our clients live full, healthy, and productive lives! In 2025, Our mission changed to be more reflective of the work that we do: We fight for health equity and will use our collective voices to challenge and navigate health and social injustices. Through the employment of harm reduction and wellness principles, we work to end HIV and other related health disparities.
Challenges still exist, and our work is far from over. Our staff of over 100 employees and more than 75 volunteers collaborate tirelessly to:
- Stop the spread of HIV, sexually transmitted infections, and Hepatitis C through education and prevention strategies;
- Provide wellness and behavioral health services;
- Meet the unique needs of the diverse HIV community (gay, bisexual, transgender, women, addicts) through safe and supportive programs;
- Address stigma, housing challenges, and barriers to care and treatment; and,
- Educate lawmakers and lobby for corrective/progressive legislation on HIV-related issues.
While programs change because of funding and client needs, our goals remain the same: to help each individual living with HIV develop the mental and physical strength to live with the disease, manage their sexual health, live life safely with partners, and maintain a treatment regimen that works most successfully for them.
Eight Offices in Seven Cities
Jersey City * Paterson * Plainfield * Trenton * New Brunswick * Newark * West New York * Union City
A Message from Hyacinth’s Executive Director
Welcome to Hyacinth! Since 1985, our values and services have demonstrated commitment, leadership, service, and accountability to New Jersey’s HIV community. We stand up for what we believe – and our most fervent belief is that it is beyond time to end this epidemic.
To do so, it will take all of us working together to fight the systems that contribute to the spread of HIV – racism, homophobia, transphobia, and poverty. We also need to improve health literacy among people living with HIV and find better solutions for common concerns, such as adequate housing.
On this website, you’ll find information about HIV/AIDS, STIs, harm reduction programs, and other Hyacinth services and volunteer opportunities. I hope you find the information you need and the right person to contact within the organization if you’d like to learn more!
Thanks for visiting our website! We look forward to partnering with you however we can.
Kathy O’Brien
Hyacinth Executive Director
Leadership
Kathy Ahearn-O’Brien
Executive Director
Axel Torres Marrero
Sr. Director of Public Policy & Prevention
Jodi Riccardi
Sr. Director of Program Development
Johanne Rateau
Director of Regional Services
Rocio Ruiz
Director of Prevention
Rosalind Ford
Director of Behavioral Health
Ann Marie Williams
Director of Development
Alicia Parker
Director of Harm Reduction
Board of Trustees
Linda J. Niedweske, Esq., President
Founder, Niedweske Law Firm, LLC
Jeri M. Thomas, Vice President
Vice President, Cardiovascular Commercial Strategy Edgewise Therapeutics
William Hagaman Jr., Treasurer
CEO Emeritus, WithumSmith+Brown
Joshua Eisinger, Member
Senior Vice President JPMorgan Chase
Nilaja S. Ford, Esq. Member
Founding Partner, Ford Brown Law
Angela Amoatey, Member
Counselor, Irvington Board of Education
Brad Arlett, Member
Head Of US Commercial IT, CSL Vifor
Perry Halkitis, PhD, MS, MPH, Member
Dean, School of Public Health, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey
Michael McQueeny, Esq., Member
Partner, Foley Hoag LLP
Bruce L. Moskovitz, M.D., Member
Retired
Robert Parkinson, Assistant Treasurer
Chief Executive Officer, Turning Point
Pascale Thomas, Member
Head of Global Benefits Bank of New York Mellon
Offices and Services
New Brunswick (Middlesex County)
Address
317 George St., Suite 203
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Phone Number: 732-246-0204
Services Offered
- Community Health Worker Support
- Emergency Financial Assistance
- Housing Placement Assistance
- Individual Mental Health
- Medical Case Management
- Medical Transportation
- Mental Health Groups
- Psychosocial Support Services
- Wellness Community at Hyacinth
Plainfield (Union County)
Address
107 Park Ave., 3rd Floor
Plainfield, NJ 07060
Phone Number: 908-755-0021
Services Offered
- Community Health Worker Support
- Emergency Financial Assistance
- Harm Reduction Center
- Syringe Access Program
- Harm Reduction Health Program
- Case Management
- HIV/STI Testing
- Housing Placement Assistance
- Individual Mental Health Counseling
- MaleBox – Gay/bisexual men’s sexual health education & LGBTQ+ drop-in center and safe space
- Medical Case Management
- Medical Transportation
- PrEP Education
- Psychosocial Support Services
- Status Neutral Case Management
- Wellness Community at Hyacinth
Newark (Essex County)
Address
201 Washington Street
Newark, NJ 07102
Phone Number: 862-240-1461
Services Offered
- Client Legal Advocacy Program
- Community Health Worker Support
- Emergency Financial Assistance
- Housing Placement Assistance
- Hyacinth Health & Wellness Clinic
- In-office and mobile HIV testing
- Individual and Group Substance Abuse Counseling
- Individual Mental Health Counseling
- Medical/Non-Medical Case Management
- Medical Transportation
- PrEP Education & Treatment
- Psychosocial Support Services
- STI testing
- Free To Be Discrete – Women’s HIV Home Self-Testing Program
- THRIVE – Women’s and Men’s Sexual Health Education
- Wellness Community at Hyacinth
Paterson (Passaic County)
Address
100 Hamilton Plaza, 14th Floor
Paterson, NJ 07505
Phone Number: 973-278-7636
Services Offered
- Community Health Worker Support
- Harm Reduction Center
- Syringe Access Program
- Harm Reduction Health Program
- Case Management
- Low Threshold Buprenorphine Program
- Housing Placement Assistance
- In-office and mobile HIV/STI testing
- Individual and Group Substance Abuse Counseling
- Individual Mental Health Counseling
- Medical and Non-Medical Case Management
- Medical Transportation
- Mobile Syringe Access Program
- PrEP Counseling
- Project PAUZE – Gay/bisexual men’s sexual health education & LGBTQ+ drop-in center and safe space
- PRISM – Status Neutral navigation services for LGBTQ+ community
- Psychosocial Support Services
- Wellness Community at Hyacinth
Trenton (Mercer County)
Address
849 W. State Street
Trenton, NJ 08618
Phone Number: 609-396-8322
Services Offered
- Community Health Worker Support
- EMC2 (Empowering Men to Create Change) – Gay/bisexual men’s sexual health education & LGBTQ+ drop-in center and safe space
- Emergency Financial Assistance
- Harm Reduction Center
- Syringe Access Program
- Harm Reduction Health Program
- Case Management
- Low Threshold Buprenorphine Program
- HIV/STI Testing & PrEP referrals
- Housing Placement Assistance
- Individual Mental Health Counseling
- Medical Transportation
- Non-medical Case Management
- PrEP counseling
- Psychosocial Support Services
- Status Neutral Case Managemet
- Wellness Community at Hyacinth
Jersey City (Hudson County)
Address
48 Fairview Ave.
Jersey City, NJ 07304
Phone Number: 201-432-1134
Services Offered
- Client Legal Advocacy
- Community Health Worker Support
- Emergency Financial Assistance
- Harm Reduction Center
- Syringe Access Program
- Harm Reduction Health Program
- Case Management
- Low Threshold Buprenorphine Program
- HIV/STI Testing & PrEP referrals
- Individual Mental Health Counseling
- Medical Transportation
- Non-Medical Case Management
- Psychosocial Support Services
- Wellness Community at Hyacinth
Union City Living Out Loud (Hudson County)
Address
1808 Kennedy Blvd.
Union City, NJ 07087
Phone Number: 201-706-3480
Services Offered
- CLEAR – Choosing Life: Empowerment, Action, Results!
- Community Outreach
- Home HIV Self Testing Program
- HIV Prevention Education
- HIV/STI Testing
- Personalized Cognitive Counseling
- PrEP Education
- PRISM- Status Neutral navigation services for LGBTQ+ community
- Project LOL – Gay/bisexual Men’s Sexual Health Education & LGBTQ+ drop-in center & safe space
Hyacinth Statewide Services & Administrative Office
Address
317 George St., Suite 203
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Phone Number: 732-246-0204
West New York (North Hudson County)
Address
440 60th Street, Suite 201
West New York, NJ 07093
Phone Number: 201-472-0985
Services Offered
- Community Health Worker Support
- Emergency Financial Assistance
- Housing Placement Assistance
- Individual Mental Health
- Non-Medical Case Management
- Medical Transportation Services
- Psychosocial Supportive Services
Employment Opportunities
Hyacinth is dedicated to hiring team members from the New Jersey communities we serve. For a complete list of employment opportunities and to submit an application, visit our career site.
The Hyacinth AIDS Foundation is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and will consider all qualified applicants without regard to sex, race, creed or religion, color, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, or veteran, sexual orientation, or marital status.
For Human Resources-related questions, please contact Kathy Ahearn-O’Brien, Executive Director, at [email protected].
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Questions about Hyacinth can be emailed to ([email protected]).
All media inquiries should be directed to Kathy Ahearn-O’Brien ([email protected]) or Axel Torres Marrero ([email protected]).
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Together, we are expanding access to care, advancing health equity, and improving lives across New Jersey.