Trans Community Comes to the Aid of Furloughed Federal Workers

The Transgender Foundation of America (TFA) announced that the Transgender Disaster Relief Fund (TDRFund.us) would accept applications for assistance from LGBTQI and allied federal workers whose lives were thrown into chaos due to the Trump Government Shutdown.

Alexis Melvin, President of TFA said, “Many LGBTQI individuals and our allies are affected by the partial government shutdown. The sudden loss of income through no fault of their own can create very difficult situations and TDRFund.us will provide whatever support we can to these individuals.

The Trans Disaster Relief is a project TFA, a 501c3 public charity, and was initially set up as a response to Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Since Hurricane Harvey, numerous other disasters, ranging from other hurricanes to earthquakes and wildfires, have been added to the TDRFund.us support list.

Cristan Williams, a co-founder of the Transgender Disaster Relief Fund said, “We’ve made the application extremely simple and straightforward. We want the affected community to know that we stand with them in their time of need.” To apply for assistance or make a donation, individuals should go to the TDRFund.us website. 

Organized in 1998, the Transgender Foundation of America (TFA) is a Houston-based grassroots 501c3 public charity and exists to improve the lives of transgender people. TFA facilitates numerous trans support groups and community events such as the Unity Banquet, now in its 26th year. Additionally, it maintains the Transgender Archive and provides annual scholarships to trans-supportive academics, represents transgender and intersex health concerns with health departments across the nation, trains organizations, companies, and schools throughout the nation and pioneered trans and intersex homeless, social, and medical services.

Cristan Williams is a trans historian and pioneer in addressing the practical needs of underserved communities. She started the first trans homeless shelter in Texas and co-founded the first federally funded housing-first homeless program, pioneered affordable health care for trans people in the Houston area, won the right for trans people to change their gender on Texas ID prior to surgery, started numerous trans social service programs and founded the Transgender Center as well as the Transgender Archives. She has published short stories, academic chapters and papers, and numerous articles for both print and digital magazines. She received numerous awards for her advocacy and has presented at universities throughout the nation, served on several governmental committees and CBO boards, is the Editor of the TransAdvocate, and is a founding board member of the Transgender Foundation of America and the Bee Busy Wellness Center.