Every tree begins with a single seed defying the odds and pushing through soil to become something new.

In 2012, a small group of transgender community members in Oregon planted a seed. They weren't trying to build an institution — they were trying to live authentically, and they knew that they needed to do it together. What started as a grassroots support group, a circle of folks who understood each other without having to explain themselves, became the seed of something that would eventually grow into the largest trans-focused nonprofit in the state.

That founding moment matters because it set the terms for everything that followed:

TransPonder would be trans-led.

TransPonder would be participant-driven.

Not as a mission statement bolted on later, but as the literal soil from which the organization grew.

MISSION & VISION

Our mission is to foster healthy communities through wellness programs; support meetings, socials, and special events; trans-inclusive resources; and training and consultation services to improve the lives and outcomes of LGBTQIA2S people, emphasizing trans and gender-diverse Oregonians. TransPonder’s vision and commitment is to address root causes of discrimination within and outside transgender, gender-diverse, intersex, lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, and queer communities through an intersectional social justice lens.

Rooted 2027