Goal is automated to increase as amount raised does. Current estimated total: $50K

Halò, I’m Illenore. I am a disabled nonbinary woman of trans experience raising money for my gender-affirming surgery. For years, I have been making my way through the process of researching options, consulting with doctors, negotiating with my insurance company, and applying for grants. After years of very little momentum, I finally found a trusted surgeon who can perform the operation I need, and I was given a tentative surgery date for this summer in July.

However, this form of care is only partially discounted by the surgeon's office, the surgery center, and the anesthesiologist, and even with the discount I was offered I will need to pay a significant amount out of pocket. I will also need to pay for recovery items after my surgery while I'm staying in California (sanitary pads, surgical lubricant for dilation, wound dressing supplies, etc.) I wanted to do this on my own, but I have realised that if this is going to happen, I will need to draw on my community and allies for support.

I took a leap of faith when I began my transition by choosing to live openly as my true self, despite living in Oklahoma, a state that is consistently ranked as one of the most hostile to trans people. I leapt again when I moved from my hometown in Oklahoma to Portland, Oregon. Coming out cost me the love and support of the family I was born into, but it also opened the door to the beautiful world where I live now, a world that is filled with hardship, but also joy. Since coming out, I have faced transphobia, in addition to the discrimination and barriers to access I experience because of my disability and religious beliefs as an openly antizionist Jewish woman. I’ve worked full-time for most of my adult life, but I am unable to afford basic living expenses, let alone save for this surgery. I feel so blessed to have met my wonderful partner at our synagogue in town, and to have formed a new, chosen family, including the two people who chose to become my parents and who love me for who I am. But we can’t do this alone.

Gender-affirming surgery is not a luxury. It is a critical form of healthcare that I need for my well-being, my confidence, and my physical comfort. It will help immeasurably with alleviating the dysphoria I have lived with for as long as I can remember. I desperately want to make peace with my body and to feel safe in public spaces. And in a political climate where the future of trans healthcare seems increasingly uncertain, I worry about waiting too long. Your donation will help me access this life-changing medical treatment, and land gracefully on my next leap of faith, learning what it is to feel at home in my body for the first time. Anything you’re able to contribute means the world to me.

With gratitude and blessings gu leòr,

Illenore