LGBTQIA+ Equality United States Project #61289

An Affirming Home for Every LGBTQ Kid

by Mama Dragons

Project Report | Feb 5, 2025
Meeting the Mom-ent

By Liz Welch | Executive Director

Our moms are the heartbeat of the Mama Dragons organization. In this moment, that heart is beating a little faster due to the circumstances we all find ourselves in.

Although many Mama Dragons are used to challenging times having walked their path from confronting non-affirming churches to creating affirming homes, this moment may be the most critical so far. Not only are they having courageous conversations across the kitchen table but are having to navigate new challenges every day.

Mama Dragons is rising to meet the needs of the community we serve.

Recently, we concluded that having 50+ private Mama Dragons Facebook groups with over 13,000 members wasn't the most effective way of communicating and also wasn't a safe space to hold the peer-to-peer support, classes, and community building that our Mama Dragons need in a time like this. We opened a new, private, secure network that holds parenting classes and support systems in one central virtual community center and are not charging any fees for our community to join us there. Because of the investment we made in this network, we have more capacity to do the work we believe in. We have expanded our classes in partnership with many national organizations and are offering those on a rolling basis. We are offering more suicide prevention training. We are also able to offer more group therapy sessions.

But we are looking forward and are about to embark on a national outreach project that will reach deep into communities where parents are just beginning the journey our Mama Dragons have taken. We are reaching out to conservative spaces and conservative faiths where mamas who want to support their LGBTQ+ children but don't have the knowledge or resources might feel isolated.

It's not easy working in those spaces, but its where the need to create affirming homes may be the greatest. And we are ready to fight like a dragon to support, educate and empower mothers of LGBTQ+ kids to do just that.

Your generous donations will help with that outreach and that life-saving mission.

Links:

Learn more about all of our programs

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Sep 24, 2024
We are growing our programs!

By Liz Welch | Executive Director

“There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they are falling in.” Bishop Desmond Tutu

62% of LGBTQ youth do not have an affirming home. LGBTQ youth who feel highly supported by their family attempt suicide at 1/2 the rate.

That's where Mama Dragons steps in.

Our programs are focused on supporting & educating mothers from non-affirming backgrounds, religions, & cultures, particularly during the first year after their child comes out. These programs offer online LGBTQ education, suicide prevention, & and both peer-led and therapist-led support groups that result in affirming parenting - because our community members have taken that journey from accepting to affirming to celebrating to advocating for our LGBTQ+ kids and our families. We know what it's like to have questions you can't ask in many spaces and to have concerns that are unique to parenting LGBTQ+ kids.

We currently offer support to over 11,000 mothers - with new members joining our community every month. We have over 20 regional groups across the US, Canada, UK, and the Pacific Islands. We also host nine affinity groups representing the expansiveness of our community's needs. We work in the hard spaces where parents sometimes feel isolated, alone, and unsure how to best support their kids.

We firmly believe that when we support the mothers of LGBTQ+ children, we are helping the LGBTQ+ community to start their lives from a place of love and acceptance instead of facing rejection in what should be the safest place to find yourself and set your path through life.

In 2025, we are beginning our Let's Have A Courageous Conversation campaign. We will offer education on effectively having hard conversations with those you don't necessarily agree with. Especially in all the places where decisions are being made that affect our families - across the kitchen table, at family events, at the schools, etc. We believe there is a bridge when are willing to find common ground intentionally.

We will also be out in communities across the country again in 2025 - attending Pride celebrations and holding regional meetups for our members so they can connect and support each other in their own towns.

Your support would enable Mama Dragons to continue our work supporting mothers and caregivers whose children need their love, acceptance, and support. The financial support we receive enables us to create spaces, both online and in person, that are safe, supportive, and celebratory of the journey of the family as a whole.

Links:

Discover more about our programs!

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Apr 15, 2024
April 2024 An Affirming Home for Every LGBTQ Kid

By Lisa Renaud | Director of Operations

LUV Without Limits

Our Mama Dragons team greatly appreciates your generous support, as we continue our work to support affirming homes for all individuals who identify as LGBTQ.

The numbers tell a sad story: 62% of LGBTQ youth do not have an affirming home. More than 40% of youth who identify as LGBTQ seriously consider suicide, and/or chronically self-harm. As the Trevor Project continues to find in their annual surveys, “LGBTQ young people are four times more likely to attempt suicide, and suicide remains the second leading cause of death among all young people in the U.S.”

However, there is hope: LGBTQ youth who felt highly supported by their family attempted suicide at 1/2 the rate of their unaffirmed peers.

Our programs are focused on supporting and educating mothers from non-affirming backgrounds, religions, and cultures, particularly during the first year after their child comes out. These programs offer LGBTQ education, suicide prevention, and support groups that result in affirming parenting.

In addition to our online and virtual support and resources, we will also be focusing on this vital mission throughout our 2024 “LUV Without Limits” Parent Education Conference, being held at the Salt Lake City Marriott (Downtown-City Creek location) on October 18&19, 2024.

https://www.luvwithoutlimits.org/

We’re partnering with Dragon Dads, Flourish Therapy, Mormon Mental Health Association, and Equality Utah to further support and educate parents, caregivers, and mental health providers of LGBTQ kids. Please join us in person to learn, connect, and create a more supportive environment for LGBTQ individuals and their families.

Together, we’re making a difference. We currently offer support to more than 10,500 members online - please help us reach others in need. Your continued generosity helps us support affirming homes for everyone who identifies as LGBTQ.

Links:

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