Kaleidoscope Youth Center, the largest and longest-running organization supporting LGBTQ+ young people in Ohio, is set to receive a financial boost.
Columbus City Council will vote Monday on a $100,000 grant agreement between the organization and Columbus Public Health.
The grant agreement will support Kaleidoscope’s Community Wellness Initiative, which focuses on the emerging mental health and wellness needs of LGBTQ+ young people in Ohio.
With this support, Kaleidoscope will be able to provide services that include individual youth counseling services at no cost to patients.
"We really want our kids to thrive. At the end of the day, we want them to be able to get out of survival patterns, the you know, the day to day and really experience a sense of thriving and knowing that something different is possible for them," Upchurch said.
Kaleidoscope executive director Erin Upchurch said Columbus Public Health has long been a supporter of their mission, and this new partnership formalizes what they're already doing.
"What this partnership will do will just allow us to be I would say more focused on health and wellness initiatives, looking at barriers to care, and other things, other factors that could impact their overall wellness," Upchurch said.
For more information about services Kaleidoscope Youth Center provides, click here.
