Kalamazoo nonprofit to open applications for gender-affirming care fund

Wood TV8 | Josh Sanchez

Published March 13, 2026

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) — OutFront Kalamazoo is opening the application window for its new gender-affirming care microgrants after collecting more than $26,000.

The LGBTQ+ advocacy nonprofit had an initial goal of collecting $10,000 between the initiative’s launch in August and the end of 2025. Executive Director Christopher Terkos said the support for the project sends a message.

“It feels really good in the aspect of the trans community is always a target, and there’s such a small portion of the population. But what the support behind the fund shows is that the community cares for them regardless of the rhetoric that we hear in the news and that they are standing up and showing support for the queer community,” he said.

Terkos said there will now be a process to review exactly where the money donated to the initiative will go.

“There’s a committee comprised completely of trans and gender-nonconforming folks that are creating how the funds will be used and how the application process goes. So that way, it’s really owned by the community and then we can help the community,” he said.

The fund comes as service requests have doubled in the last year and at a time when LGBTQ+ nonprofits have felt a funding squeeze, Terkos said.

“We have received state funding in the past and some of those funds have funneled through federal, but it was never a specific federal grant. OutFront has lost that funding, as have all queer organizations across the state of Michigan. The health disparity fund that was created has gone away and that has a huge impact on the community and the supports we’re able to provide,” he said. “The other aspect that’s happening in the community is across the entire community, all marginalized community supports have been cut. So what that means is there’s more need.”

The microgrants are expected to help members of the trans community finalize or get started on gender-affirming care, like facial surgeries and chest procedures. Nonprofit leaders say they expect to distribute $10,000 during the first cycle. The application window is from March 30 to May 1.

Original Link: https://www.woodtv.com/news/kalamazoo-county/kalamazoo-nonprofit-to-open-applications-for-gender-affirming-care-fund/