Keep my mentee Micah, in college & safely housed

I have known Micah Westbrook for almost three years. They applied for a position on the Youth Advisory Panel of a new program to support LGBTQ+ youth with the non-profit I work for. Micah was the vice president of their high school GSA in Florida and wrote in their application, “I want to help provide community since that’s something I struggled with growing up, and having resources and safe places was a hard thing to do.”

From the very beginning, I knew that Micah was special. They were so very thoughtful and super sharp. They were attending an arts high school and focused on writing and poetry. For their bio for the Advisory Panel, they wrote, “One of my main crafts is poetry. It’s worked as a vessel for me (especially spoken word). But I truly hope to make films one day."

Twice in the last year and a half or so, Micah reached out letting me know that things were really rocky with their mom and they didn’t think they could stay there any longer. They eventually decided to live in the dorms for their mental health even though it was more expensive. They are at home for the summer and reached out; I’ve tried to help them find other housing situations, but there isn’t a lot for a young person in Florida.

Micah has been working, submitted scholarship applications, and has some financial loans, but it’s not enough. Family members offer support, but then withdraw it when things are tense. And to make things worse, tuition has gone up since they started college. They need to make a tuition payment before they can start their third year in August. I want to help them feel confident that they’ll be able to stay in school, in the dorms, and graduate.

They’ve asked for help from friends and others in their network, but their network doesn’t have anywhere near the capacity that ours does. Any size gift is helpful and appreciated, as is sharing this fundraiser with your network. Your donation, no matter how small, will go toward tuition ($10,000) and housing ($5,000) – keeping Micah in college studying film and sociology and able to focus on their classes and not whether they feel unsafe at home.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and to consider donating towards Micah’s education. I know our community values education and we recognize that we don’t all have equal access. Micah can bring many beautiful things to the world; they will be able to so much more easily with this kind of support. With gratitude, — Deborah