We improve the quality of life for all LGBTQIA2S+ youth in our community, as well as children raised in homes where LGBTQIA2S+ people live. Our vision is a vibrant community where every youth thrives in their expression of actual or perceived sexual orientation & gender identity.
We:
* Identify unmet needs for LGBTQIA2S+ youth
* Improve existing resources & implement new resources
* Increase awareness of community resources
* Foster collaboration of services, LGBTQIA2S+ related education, advocacy, and media visibility
Our Programs: Safe Schools Project; Queer Youth Leadership Awards; Trans Teen Project
Leadership Development
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; provide honorariums to trans youth for internships; and pay student filmmakers a stipend for our documentary.
For interested donors, we also invite contributions to expand the Queer, Trans, and Allied Student Summit of the Central Coast, which offers resources, workshops, and opportunities for students to collaborate on projects in the tri-county areas (Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Benito).
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
