Jax Baxter Solidarity Care Fund

Jax Baxter is an awesome human in our community who has contributed so much and is in need of some community care right now. They are a good support in my circle and I want to reach out to other friends and supporters in Jax's circle who would rally behind the idea of a SOLIDARITY CARE FUND. Even when things feel predominantly dire, I see our community standing closer together and looking for

ways to support each other. I would like us to come together - even spare $5 dollars if you can - to raise funds in solidarity for Jax.

For a majority of us, we did not win the family lottery and significant trauma can start at a young age and repeat in heartbreaking cycles as we get older. Jax is a survivor of a traumatic childhood and was in the foster care system as a teenager which resulted in more trauma. This is their story to tell and those that know them - know that while they survived &%@shitshit that no child deserves - they are still the kindest and most empathetic soul. And our community can offer this to them!

There is so much research on trauma pointing to the adverse childhood experiences that create significant struggles for adults later in life. We live in a supposedly universal healthcare system - yet almost all specialized trauma therapy is not covered by OHIP.

Jax survived all that &%@shit to go into the social services fields - which are also under-funded and under resourced. And us folks who work in this field (while doing critical social change and advocacy) often end up with short term contracts, part time gigs, using free time to write multiple grants to sustain community projects. All of this with no job permanence and no private healthcare coverage - because we love the work - and Jax has prioritized this work over their own financial resources. They do not have the funds or private health care to pay for the trauma recovery they need.

This lovely human created the fantastic organization Rainbow Mentors - which supports 2SLGBTQ+ youth through positive mentorship and skills building. This organization has impacted many families in our province, and specifically provided much needed programming in Guelph. They volunteered with Brantford Pride and started Brantford's first gender peer support group at Grand River CHC. They served as the chairperson and president of Hamilton Pride in 2018/2019 In addition Jax worked in developmental services for 5 years as a front line residential counselor and behaviour technician before shifting to working with youth. They moved to Guelph in 2021 and continue to run Rainbow mentors in Hamilton, Fergus and Guelph.

I know we are all strapped for cash (groceries are brutally expensive right now) - so I am hoping we can all donate a little bit to add up to a whole lot of community care for Jax. Join me in building a SOLIDARITY COMMUNITY CARE FUND that will be all the difference in getting the care this amazing human needs.

Solidarity Care Fund goal includes: