The Association of Nurses in AIDS Care held its national conference in Chicago last fall. During the conference, two friends, Melanie Steilen and Erik Mortensen, did a StoryCorps interview. They talked about where they were at the beginnings of the AIDS epidemic, which for Erik involved meeting his partner, Tom.

StoryCorps’ mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to share, record and preserve their stories. These excerpts, edited by WBEZ, present some of our favorites from the current visit, as well as from previous trips.