This spring, our Grant-Making Panel gathered in Miami, Florida to reflect on our grant review process – what’s worked, what hasn’t, and how we move forward. The conversations were honest, generative, and full of new ideas.
One of our most exciting shifts is that we want to begin supporting organizations in building their infrastructure while they apply so that the process itself becomes a resource, not a hurdle. Coaching, capacity-building, and structural support will be woven into the grant experience from the very beginning.
We also leave Miami with a bold vision: launching an annual Queer Mobilization Network convening, bringing together past, current, and future grantees to build a connected, mobilized network ready to move on the issues that matter most to our community.
Gathering with Our Grantees
Retreat week also gave us something we don’t take for granted: real time with the people doing the work. We had the chance to sit down with our grantee partners right there in Miami with DeCrim305 and BLINC sharing stories, swapping lessons, and deepening the relationships that make this fund more than a transactional experience.
Site Visit Spotlight – Ripple Hauxs
We made our way to Orlando, Florida for a site visit with Ripple Hauxs. Ripple Hauxs is a sanctuary home: The first community third space in hostile Florida that exists specifically to serve, politically educate, and build leadership with queer and trans community members in the Greater Orlando Area.
Ripple Haus is a breathing third space where people come to be held, to create, to worship, to rest, and to find each other. Services include transportation to gender-affirming healthcare appointments, mutual aid, and a gender-affirming clothing closet. They are building community infrastructure from the ground up, on their own terms.
The space weaves together spirituality, culture, art, and community in a way that feels intentional and alive. Every program they offer is free for BIPOC queer trans folks. There is gathering. There is beauty on the walls and warmth at the door. And for the queer and trans folks who walk through it – a true safe haven. Ripple Hauxs is exactly what this fund exists to support. We left amazed, inspired, and more committed than ever.
With over 100 active members, the ripples are already spreading.
