Online Dating Helps People With AIDS, HIV

Dec. 1, 2006 — -- Finding love is inherently difficult for almost anybody. But for South African native Mary, simple dating carried potentially disastrous consequences.

Mary was HIV-positive and was plagued with issues of revealing her HIV infection to a prospective partner -- planning for a long-term relationship when she does not know what the next day holds, and keeping a partner safe from her virus.

In search of an answer, Mary went online and discovered a dating Web site for people living with HIV and AIDS called The Positive Connection. Mary immediately signed up, and after a few months, had gotten to know two men who were in the "same situation" as her, one from the United Kingdom and the other from South Africa.

Mary's story is just one of many that Ben Sassman, founder of The Positive Connection, hears everyday. Sassman is one of the few who dares to concern himself with the "living" part of living with HIV, and saw the need for an online dating opportunity for HIV-positive patients.

In an effort to help an old friend who was in the same predicament as Mary, Sassman self-funded his own online dating service. Since its start in 2003, Sassman's friend, Mary and thousands of other HIV-infected people were able to find love through his website.

Sassman (who is not infected with HIV himself) has no more knowledge about the HIV and AIDS epidemic than any other person. He adamantly tells ABC News that he "never pretended to be an expert on HIV or AIDS." Instead, he is simply a person who cared about a friend.

On a vacation to Cape Town, Sassman reconnected with an old friend who disclosed to him that he was HIV-positive. But instead of focusing on the physical effects of his illness, Sassman's friend began to describe the difficulties of dating women as an HIV patient. He often felt morally obligated to immediately inform each potential date that he was infected with HIV -- almost guaranteeing a rejection for a second date.