Some of the family of New Alternatives for Homeless LGBT Youth, one of the programs supported by The Dad Fund.
Photo courtesy of New Alternatives.
The Dad Fund, love in action
Showing up for youth
We have incubated, championed, and funded hundreds of groups that serve LGBTQ youth, which, today, comprise a third of our grantmaking. The Dad Fund, one of dozens of specialized funds we manage, engages gay men who are fathers in raising money for this work. At the heart of the Fund is a network of dads who, in addition to organizing play dates for their families, make monthly contributions of $20 or more. Dad Fund members offer us the best definition of philanthropy we know: love in action. Just as remarkable is what their connection makes possible.
Since its establishment in 2015, the Dad Fund has awarded over $47,000, aiding a growing roster of organizations. Dad Fund grants are designed to support queer youth in education, housing, and social services, but since March 2020, the Fund’s existence has made it one of the critical cornerstones of Stonewall’s emergency pandemic response. While continuing to meet its mission, the Dad Fund played a crucial role in keeping queer youth safe over the last year: 46% of all Dad Fund grants have been made to support queer youth during the COVID-19 pandemic.
When it comes to Stonewall's mission of making sure money makes a difference, relationships are indeed the greatest multiplying force. Click here to join the Dad Fund.
Dad Fund Spotlights
COVID-19 Response
In the early months of the pandemic, the Dad Fund was one of Stonewall’s three discretionary funds that allowed us to make rapid, proactive grants to organizations working with the most vulnerable parts of the LGBTQ community. Together with the Emergency Response Fund and the Mx. Justin Vivian Bond Fund, the Dad Fund allowed us to make a record-breaking $90,000 in grants during the early months of the pandemic. In particular, Dad Fund grants funded the Ali Forney Center, Trinity Place Shelter, and New Alternatives for Homeless LGBT Youth, programs serving LGBTQ youth that overnight had to provide round-the-clock services to keep their clients safe.
In March 2021, the Dad Fund made an $8,000 grant to Hetrick-Martin Institute, the country’s oldest and largest organization serving LGBTQ youth of color. Throughout the pandemic, HMI has continued to provide LGBTQ youth with crisis counseling, STI testing, medical care, and support groups. This grant, the largest-ever we’ve awarded to HMI, signals the community’s support of HMI and their new executive director Joe Pressley, and ensures that they’re able to continue to provide their life-saving services.
In the fall of 2019, we were contacted by the clothing retailer Everlane. Everlane had boxes of clothing that were un-sellable but still in good condition that they wanted to go to people in need. We leveraged $435 from the Dad Fund to send shipments of $50,000 of shoes, winter coats, jeans, and sweaters to organizations that serve LGBTQ youth. From November 2019 through February 2020, we sent clothing to four grantee partners that have long-standing, trusted relationships with homeless LGBTQ youth, knowing that they were best positioned to get the clothing to those who needed them. The clothing was incredibly well-received by the youth – New Alternatives told us that the donations “pretty much flew out of here,” and Streetwork Project echoed, “This donation means a lot to our young people.” Our partners at The Door wanted us to pass their gratitude along to you, saying, “We are so lucky to have wonderful partners like you and the Stonewall Community Foundation that make this work possible!”
GAP, founded in 1991, works with young people most affected by injustice to build the knowledge, tools, and community needed to create media for cultural expression, and sociopolitical change. In 2016 and 2017, the Dad Fund supported SupaFriends, GAP’s social justice media-arts leadership program for LGBTQ youth. More specifically, funding underwrote films conceived, written, directed, acted, and edited by LGBTQ youth—their stories, in their words. In 2021, Global Action Project released its final collection of curricula, workshops, and stories from the community.
OutCycling, a nonprofit created in 2009, promotes healthy living among their network of over 2,000 LGBTQ individuals. Through an array of programs and activities, they position bicycling as a means of recreation, companionship, fitness, and transportation. In 2016, the Dad Fund supported Fearless Flyers, an initiative for low-income LGBTQ youth teaching the importance of wellness and working as a team. Our grant covered a dozen participants, including bike and equipment purchases, as well as a 10-week course in safety, riding skills, and nutrition.
PCYP, a leading legal services organization founded in 1994, advocates for LGBTQ youth who are at risk or have history of homelessness. For this population, the pursuit of stability often leads to legal barriers. The nature of these vary, from not having gender-affirming identification to facing criminal charges for participation in survival economies, like sex work. Following the Trump administration’s rescindment of DACA, we provided a grant to PCYP so they could expedite cases of homeless LGBTQ youth who are also undocumented. A second grant was made in 2020 to help support the program during the COVID-19 pandemic.
