Transform Cincy, a Cincinnati nonprofit serving LGBTQ+ youth, says it may close for six weeks if it cannot secure more funding before its city grant is renewed in November. The shutdown would pause its free wardrobe, support-group and community programs.
Transform says its wardrobe service for transgender youth—clothing, shoes, accessories and haircuts, available up to three times a year—costs almost $12,000 a month. It relies heavily on individual donations and has never received state or federal grants; co-founder Tristan Vaught attributed the recent drop in giving largely to rising living costs.
One campaign seeks $40 monthly or a $450 one-time donation to cover a young person’s wardrobe services for a year. Another is a raffle for a donated 2014 Subaru Forester: everyone may enter once for free, while a $10 donation buys one entry and $100 buys 15. The raffle ends at midnight Sept. 30, with a live social-media drawing planned for Wednesday morning.
