Shahad Alghamdi (he/him) of New York was selected for a Founders’ grant for gender affirming surgery with Dr. Scott Mosser. When asked what receiving this grant means to him, Shahad said, “For me, this surgery is a lifeline that I have long dreamed of. I am a young, queer, immigrant transman from a religious fundamentalist country where being trans is punishable by the death penalty. My family and my society intensely pressured me to conform to the gender norms expected of women, and I was punished and beaten when I tried to defy their expectations. I was in a cycle of severe depression, dysphoria, and suicidal ideation. Even after I escaped to the United States, I was struggling financially, and the cost of gender affirming surgery was out of reach. I am forever grateful to the Jim Collins Foundation for awarding me a surgical grant and making my dream a reality.”