Spiritual Care for Trans Leaders on the Frontlines

In a time of mounting repression— when anti-trans executive orders and bans on gender-affirming care threaten the lives and wellbeing of trans people everywhere — we return to the oldest sacred act: choosing, again and again, to love each other into tomorrow.

Holding Each Other Close is a six-month, trans-led 1:1 spiritual mentorship program. It is a sacred experiment in trans movement chaplaincy, in politicized contemplative care. This summer, we’re raising $45,000 to bring our trans spiritual mentorship project to life.

For six months, trans movement leaders will receive monthly 1:1 sessions—grounding in practice, receiving guidance, and tending to grief, exhaustion, and the complexities of leading in these times.

Meet our Guiding Teachers

☾ La Sarmiento
For 16 years La Sarmiento has served as the guiding teacher for the Insight Meditation Community of Washington’s People of Color and LGBTQ Sanghas, and for 8 years guided the Garrison LGBTQIA+ retreats. La’s relationship with Vipassana has been going strong for over 23 years. Known for writing dharma spoof songs to help us take life less seriously, La also takes refuge in building Lego when the going gets tough.

☾ Kai Cheng Thom
Kai Cheng Thom is an award-winning author, performer, and practitioner in the fields of trauma healing, professional coaching, somatics, dialogue facilitation, and conflict transformation. She is a widely published author in multiple genres — her nonfiction essay collection I HOPE WE CHOOSE LOVE: A Trans Girl's Notes From the End of the World received the Stonewall Honor Award, and her poetry collection Falling Back In Love With Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls was an instant Canadian bestseller.

☾ Jacoby Ballard BPF’s own Board President, Jacoby Ballard is a social justice educator and yoga teacher devoted to building resilience in queer and trans communities. For nearly two decades, he has taught Queer and Trans Yoga — a space for unfurling, healing, and cultivating strength — while leading workshops, retreats, and teacher trainings nationwide.He is the author of A Queer Dharma: Yoga and Meditations for Liberation (2021), and continues to braid together practice, justice, and collective care in every space he teaches.

Together, our teachers bring decades of experience in Buddhist practice, trauma-informed care, and trans movement leadership to guide this circle with deep tenderness, courage, and wisdom.

“Our giving is proof that we loved each other enough to make sure tomorrow was waiting for us.” Dani Padilla, BPF

We need to raise $45,000 this summer to make the first season of Holding Each Other Close real — Here’s what you’ll be funding:

Honoraria for trans, gender expansive, and two spirit mentors providing 1:1 direct support to leaders
Honoraria for guiding teachers Kai Cheng Thom, La Sarmiento and Jacoby Ballard
Program coordination, logistics, and key administrative tasks
Care packages, ceremony offerings, and the gentle logistics of care
Three live gatherings for reflection, integration, and celebration
Admin + Operational Support- The sacred behind-the-scenes labor that often goes unseen—emails, scheduling, outreach, and coordination
Wellness Stipends- So leaders receiving 1:1 sessions can also access therapy, bodywork, rest, and other vital forms of healing during their six-month journey.

If you believe that frontlines trans leaders who feel nourished by the Buddhadharma should have access to spiritual support,

If you know that trans, non-binary, and gender expansive Buddhist teachers and healers need to be well compensated for holding the spiritual backbone of the trans justice movement,

If you believe in the power of the Dharma to support clarity, creativity, joy and courage in the current political moment,

Give what you can — and help bring this project to life.

And if you have more to give, let your love ripple outward:

꩜Invite a friend, dharma sibling, a beloved to give alongside you.
꩜Share this call in your sangha, on your socials, in your group chats — let it travel farther than we can alone.
꩜ Make an extra gift this year, above and beyond your usual support, to meet this urgent, emergent need.

We are asking you to stand closer than you ever have before.
To be part of a community that refuses to let our trans leaders face this alone.

In the face of forces that seek to fracture us, let us hold each other close...

Holding Each Other Close ✺ Summer Drive

Trans Spiritual Mentorship Project