We improve the quality of life for all LGBTQIA+ youth in our community, as well as children raised in homes where LGBTQIA+ people live. Our visibility aims directly at LGBTQIA+ youth and indirectly at families, questioning/closeted youth. We:
Identify unmet needs for LGBTQIA+ youth;
Increase awareness of community resources;
Foster collaboration, LGBTQIA+ related education, advocacy, and media visibility through our Safe Schools Project;
Host the Queer Youth Leadership Awards;
Facilitate the Trans Teen Project.
We would like to support trans, nonbinary, and gender-expansive youth in Santa Cruz County this year with a website resource that educates and raises awareness among parents and the community about trans issues. We will facilitate conversations and understandings between trans teens and the wider community.
Trans teens will control their own narratives and share stories and experiences that are important to them. Our goals are to promote existing resources available for the trans community, make short documentary films, implement teens-led small projects, promote an activity titled “Unbox Me,” and host radio shows.
Please help us raise funds to: hire a part-time coordinator to keep the site updated and work with partners such as Santa Cruz Trans, TransFamilies, and Big Brothers Big Sisters to support Trans teens in Santa Cruz County.
For interested donors, we also invite contributions to the annual Queer Youth Leadership Awards, with a focus on a search for 500+ nominees and awardees from our 28-year history to produce a “Where are they now?” project at QYLA.org/legacy.
Thank you for giving me so many opportunities to get involved and advocating for the LGBTQIA2S+ community and to get my voice heard.
Lucía Umeki-Martínez, Watsonville, 18 years old
