Hero of the Week: Jack Mackenroth

By Annie Scott - November 20, 2008 Jack Mackenroth is one of the designers from Season 4 of Project Runway (2007). Sadly, he came down with a contagious staph infection and had to leave the show, but hey - at least he wasn't eliminated! Jack's all better now, and he's doing something great. He is the (totally hot) face and designer behind Living Positive By Design. "To people living with, living with, living with, not dying from disease..." - from Rent by Jonathan Larson Living Positive By Design is a campaign to change the way people perceive those living with HIV and AIDS. Jack Mackenroth has been living with HIV for over 20 years. He's not just HIV positive, though, he's outlook positive. He wants to help people live happy, healthy lives like his. "I'm just trying to rock it out," he told me.  

I caught up with Jack at Fashion Forward, a fashion show hosted by Tim Gunn to benefit Gay Men's Health Crisis. Jack spoke eloquently and warmly about Living Positive By Design in front of a sea of fashionistas waiting to drool over John Varvatos and Betsey Johnson, among others. An excerpt from his speech: "I am most proud of the fact that I was open about my positive HIV status on the show and exemplified that a person can manage HIV and live a successful life. Every time a person with HIV is open about his or her status it helps everyone who is living with the disease. That’s why I’m here tonight to talk about an inspiring HIV educational campaign I’m working on with Merck and many AIDS service organizations called Living Positive By Design. Living Positive By Design encourages people, both HIV + and HIV -, to engage in thoughtful conversations about HIV. Through these conversations, we hope to help eliminate the stigma still associated with the disease. We encourage people living with HIV to be proactive with their doctors to find a treatment regimen that gets their virus to an undetectable level, one of the most important goals of treatment. For physicians who treat HIV, we want them to consider treatment tolerability so patients are more likely to stay on their medications." "I am a living testament to what you can accomplish by letting go of shame and being your own advocate." Good work, Jack. The logo for Living Positive By Design is a simple red scarf, which he himself designed, draped to echo the traditional red AIDS ribbon. I have one. It's nice. I asked him how this all got started, and he said that healthcare giant Merck approached him with the basic idea and he was happy to run with it! And run he has. The scarf, a bright red wool blend emblazoned with LIVING POSITIVE By Design and Jack Mackenroth, is not available in stores - practically a guarantee that it's gonna be cool to have one. The reason they're not selling them is that they're not looking to make money. "It's not a charity, it's just about visibility," he said. "We want to get people (patients, doctors, families) talking." How can you get involved? Well, first of all you can visit and befriend the Living Postive By Design page on MySpace. Watch the video, send it to your friends, and get people talking. That is, after all, the point. Jack Mackenroth and the Living Positive By Design campaign are heading next to Houston, then San Francisco, but not until after the holidays. Jack's heading first to see his Mom in Seattle. What does he want for Christmas? "An assistant! Please, get the word out there in the universe!" Done and done, Jack, and congratulations on being the Tonic News Hero of the Week! Be sure to check out his blog, Memoirs of a Gaysha. It's adorable. Annie Scott is a playwright and actress in New York City, as well as a regular contributor to StyleList.com, Luxist.com, and Holidash.com. She serves as our bi-weekly contributor on Saturdays as well as turning in occasional special assignments (like today).