Support Cayla Calhoun: Overcoming Job Search Hurdles

Many of you know Cayla Calhoun, whether through wine, poetry, music or volunteer work, but not many have gotten to be as close to her as I have over the last 2 years. Throughout that time I have been inspired and encouraged by her creativity, work ethic and relentless dedication to being fully true to herself.

Despite having only been in Alabama for four years, she has been busy. She was selected to represent the state of Alabama at the National Poetry Convention in 2022 and in 2023 became the first openly trans woman to run a wine list at a fine dining restaurant in this state. She has taught poetry in the Birmingham City schools, produced dozens of creative events throughout the state, penned the official 150 year history of Birmingham for the Birmingham Public Library and even, without a job and struggling financially, took a month to come with me to help with clean up in Western, NC.

After passing her Certified Sommelier Examination in July she and I had little doubt that she would find work quickly. She had never had much trouble finding work before and with her skill and experience we assumed she would find a good fit almost immediately. I watched as she applied her tireless work ethic to finding a job in her field, while encouraging her as she continued to remain relentlessly true to herself.

Unfortunately, after more than four months and seeing her apply at more than seventy-five establishments it became increasingly clear that Cayla's gender identity was significantly hindering her job search.

Fortunately, as of today, Cayla has found work going forward, but over the course of the last few months of looking has depleted their savings and fallen behind on their financial responsibilities. She is currently three months behind on her mortgage - a debt that along with her property tax needs to be dealt with by the end of the month.

My goal is that we as a community come together and help raise $3,500 dollars to help our sister get back on her feet and keep shining her peculiar light here in Alabama.