The latest New Yorker of the Week has spent two decades helping HIV-positive New Yorkers get their lives back on track. NY1's John Schiumo filed the following report.

After 20 years as the director of the AIDS Service Center in Greenwich Village, Sharen Duke has witnessed many survival stories. Many of them walk the center’s halls as employees, or line the walls as art and sometimes they even pop up on television.

"I’m listening to NY1 in the morning and I hear Florence’s voice and she’s being interviewed in Grand Central Station and she’s helping homeless people get housed in the cold of winter," says Duke. "And I think this is what it is, she went from client to peer educator to full-time employee."

At the center, New Yorkers like Florence discover how to use their HIV-positive status to make a positive change. When Duke began, those stories were far less common.

"I was going to a memorial service every single week," says Duke. "It was devastating, and I felt really strongly. I wanted to give back."

Survival is a trait passed down from her father, a Holocaust survivor.

"His legacy of survival and standing up for what is right, even if it’s not popular or difficult, is something that I feel like I have carried forward with me into my work here," says Duke.

Her instincts have paid off. Education and treatment have reduced deaths from AIDS dramatically, thanks in part, to the services at ASC.

"ASC is a one-stop shop. You can come here and get everything from a hug to a meal," says peer educator Diane Williams.

"They can come to the clothing room, they can meet one of our peers and get what they need," says Duke.

Peer education is key. Those seeking support can earn money helping others.

"The beauty of the ASC model is that its cyclical, that the client today can become the teacher tomorrow," says Duke.

Monique Gary-Narayanan is a client who took great advantage of that.

"Coming home from jail with a felony, I felt there wasn’t many options for me and this was a place that gave me the opportunity to get my life back on track," says Gary-Narayanan.

So, for facilitating positive change, Sharen Duke is the latest New Yorker of the Week. For more information on the work of the AIDS Service Center, visit www.ascnyc.org or call 1-212-645-0875.