LGBTQ elders risk aging in isolation. A nonprofit is trying to change that.

LGBTQ+ youth centers, like The Ruth Ellis Center, are working to provide a sense of community and access to necessary services to uplift local LGBTQ+ youth. The Ruth Ellis Center offers shelter to LGBTQ+ youth facing homelessness and serves about 1,200 people each year. Along with shelter, the Center also works to bridge the healthcare gap in the LGBTQ+ community by partnering with Henry Ford Health to provide general wellness visits, STI/HIV screening, contraceptives and gender-affirming care.

Insurance provider GreenShield, in collaboration with university insurance broker Studentcare, provides lifetime coverage of up to $10,000 for gender-affirming care procedures not covered by provincial health insurance. This insurance benefit provides care to more than 200,000 university students across 20 participating schools in the country.

LGBTQ+ organizations in the South, like The Campaign for Southern Equality, are raising money to give to families seeking gender-affirming care services for transgender youth. The money is used to cover travel costs to states without care bans, as well as gender-affirming clothing and other supplies. So far, the group has distributed about 350 $500 grants. In addition to funding, the group also works to ensure families have accurate information about gender-affirming care bans in their state, as the legal landscape is confusing and constantly changing.

The Gender Diverse Care Coalition of New Hampshire works to expand access to gender-affirming care through free training, consultations with providers, education and advocacy work. The Coalition also has a website that offers a database of resources on gender-affirming care in the state and surrounding area. Through its offerings, the Coalition is working to increase the number of providers in the state who are comfortable and capable of providing care to transgender patients.

Nour Sarah is a collaboration between two non-profits — Spectrum and LebMASH — that aims to help LGBTQ+ people in the North African and West Asian region understand their mental health issues and receive support services. Nour Sarah aims to provide safe care to those who need it in spaces where it’s historically hard to find. The group hosts educational sessions and connects people with counselors trained to provide care to LGBTQ+ people who are drastically under-supported when it comes to accessing mental health care.

The João W. Nery Outpatient Clinic provides medical and transition-related care for the area’s trans community. The Clinic provides patients access to social workers, psychologists, endocrinologists, nurses, and general practitioners who help patients get prescriptions for hormones, referrals for gender-affirming surgery, and advice on legally changing their names, all of which are offered for free.

Lavender Courtyard is a three-story apartment complex that serves LGBTQ+ seniors who pay affordable rents based on income, which caps rents at 30% of their monthly-adjusted income. With the housing crisis running rampant, the Lavender Courtyard provides seniors with affordable housing and a space where they can safely live comfortably and authentically.

The Fitness Trans Formed program provides a safe space for trans people and members of the LGBTQ+ community to exercise and participate in fitness training from trans professionals. Training is available in a tiered pricing structure, including an option to pay nothing, and about 50 individuals have completed a Fitness Trans Formed training program since its inception. The group is also working on plans to provide informed training to other fitness professionals to make their gyms and workout spaces more inclusive.

Working on Womanhood (WOW) hosts weekly, school-based meetings for Black and Hispanic girls in grades six to 12 to connect, work through personal problems and build a sense of self-awareness and confidence, as this population is largely underserved by mental health programs. Research shows that WOW participants experience decreased anxiety and depression and WOW counselors also report seeing less anger and fights among the participating students.

Doulas are becoming a more widely used resource among pregnant people, particularly Black women who historically face racial inequities during pregnancy and childbirth. Groups like The Doula Network and the Southern Birth Justice Network are working to expand doula services by training and connecting pregnant women with certified doulas. Doula care is more holistic and studies show that women using doulas have about a 65% reduction in their odds of developing postpartum depression or anxiety when a doula is present during labor and delivery.