My name is Drew. I received the first grant from the Jim Collins Foundation in 2011.

I am having a fundraiser from now until Aug. 12, 2012. I have made this video in hopes that sharing my journey and choosing a challenging race will bring in more pledges.

“We are thrilled to receive this level of support” said Stephanie Houle, treasurer and board member for The Jim Collins Foundation. “We have been running on the generosity of individual donations and fundraising dollar by dollar and are always grateful for every penny we receive. This donation will go a long way and make a significant difference in people’s lives.”

The Jim Collins Foundation is a non-profit, all volunteer organization whose mission is to provide financial assistance to transgender people for gender-confirming surgeries. Founded by two transgender people in 2008, the organization operates on individual donations and is run by a board comprised of medical professionals, attorneys, and activists. In March, the organization announced its second round of grant recipients, Aramentha Jones of New York and Nick Lawrence of California.

In the past year, the foundation received over 300 applications, many from people who were desperate for assistance. Access to gender-confirming surgery is impossible for most. Discrimination against transgender people is so prevalent that many transgender people struggle to survive, never mind save for surgery costs. Even for those who have health insurance, coverage is systematically denied.

“Our community needs to know they are supported,” said Tony Ferraiolo , co-founder of The Jim Collins Foundation. “People are starting to pay attention to the barriers that transgender people face when it comes to health care and we are working to change things.”
The Jim Collins Foundation operates on individual donations. 

“The need is immense,” said Tony Ferraiolo, co-founder of the organization and a transgender youth advocate. “Many transgender people are not able to access the health care that they need, and this can lead to extremely unfortunate circumstances. These surgeries are life-saving.”

The Jim Collins Foundation is a non-profit, all volunteer organization whose mission is to provide financial assistance to transgender people for gender-confirming surgeries. Founded by two transgender people in 2008, the organization operates on individual donations and is run by a board comprised of medical professionals, attorneys, and activists. Last year, the Jim Collins Foundation gave away its first grant to Drew Lodi, a transgender man on Medicaid who resorted to collecting cans towards his surgery expense.

“Not every transgender person needs surgery as part of their transition,” says Dru Levasseur, co-founder of the Jim Collins Foundation and national transgender rights attorney. “However, we’ve seen first-hand the significant harms that transgender people face when they cannot access treatments that their doctors deemed medically necessary. The Jim Collins Foundation is proud to provide some assistance to people who face discriminatory barriers to coverage in public and private health insurance.”

This past year, the foundation received over 300 applications, many from people who were desperate for assistance. A nation-wide selection committee comprised of anonymous transgender individuals chose the 2012 grantees based on financial need. Thanks to the generous donation of pro bono services from Dr. Christine McGinn at the Papillon Center in New Hope, Pennsylvania the foundation is able to fund two surgeries this year. Dr. McGinn is one of the nation’s leading surgeons specializing in gender-confirming surgery and an out transgender person herself. She has been featured on the GLAAD media award nominated Anderson Cooper show and will be highlighted on the Dr. Oz Show on March 29th.

“I believe in what the Jim Collins Foundation is doing,” said Dr. McGinn “I have been waiting for the right organization to collaborate with to give back to my community in this way, and I am happy to donate my services to a foundation and cause such as this.”

The Jim Collins Foundation operates on individual donations. To learn more about our grant recipients and to make a donation, please visit www.jimcollinsfoundation.org.

The second grant recipient, Nick Lawrence of California, faced a financial crisis when he and his wife of eighteen years were laid off of their jobs and their adopted daughter experienced a medical crisis. After two and a half years of unemployment and applying for over two hundred jobs with no luck, he started his own business, but struggled to make ends meet. Faced with a mound of debt, he has no way to pay for surgery without assistance. “I am usually the one giving money, support, time, care and attention to those less fortunate than me,” say Lawrence. “But, I am now at the point where I need some help, some strength from others to help me get through this time of challenge. Once I am on my feet, I will continue to help those who need.

Drew came out as transgender to his family and friends in 2008. He states that “the Jim Collins Foundation for me is a miracle. They helped me to stay motivated to live each day purposefully…I improved my life, mind, body, relationships, and faith. To know that people are out there who do NOT have to be helping–but are–makes me motivated to do everything I can…”

Drew submitted his application for a grant in hopes of receiving funds to help him obtain gender-confirming surgery that, for far too long, seemed impossible to afford. In preparation for surgery, Drew collected cans three to five days a week, keeping in mind that “five cents was way more than zero.”

The mission of the Jim Collins Foundation is to provide financial assistance to transgender people for gender-confirming surgeries. The Jim Collins Foundation recognizes that not every transgender person needs or wants surgery to achieve a healthy transition. But for those who do, gender-confirming surgeries are an important step in their transition to being their true selves. However, access to gender-confirming surgery is impossible for most. Discrimination against transgender people is so prevalent that many transgender people struggle to survive, never mind save for surgery costs. Even for those who have health insurance, coverage is systematically denied. Many insurance policies contain a “Transsexual Exclusion Clause” which excludes all medical procedures related to a person’s transgender status. For many transgender people, access to surgery is out of reach.

The Jim Collins Foundation raises money to fund gender-confirming surgeries for those transgender people who need surgery to live a healthy life, but have no ability to pay for it themselves. We recognize that for those people who require surgery for a healthy gender transition, lack of access to surgery may result in hopelessness, depression, and sometimes, suicide. The Jim Collins Foundation is a community-based initiative promoting the self-determination and empowerment of all transgender people.

Thanks to everyone for being part of a successful NYC kick-off event and fundraiser- thanks to Kate Bornstein, Good Asian Drivers, and Murray Hill for a great performance!

(Fortune Small Business) — Tony Ferraiolo will never forget his first day back at work after surgery. The 46-year-old supervisor’s knees trembled as he entered the windowless headquarters of Madison Co., a switch and sensor manufacturer in Branford, Conn… Read Full Article