A Texas church launched a nonprofit organization on Aug. 23 to raise travel funds for parents trying to get sex change medical procedures outside of the state for their children after the legislature passed a law banning the practice, according to an announcement.
In June, the state passed SB 14 which prohibits physicians from performing orchiectomy, phalloplasty and vaginoplasty procedures on minors, and also restricts access to hormone and puberty blockers, with a small exception for intersex children. Galileo Church in Fort Worth, Texas, announced that it was launching a new project two months later called the North Texas TRANSportation Network, which gives $1,000 grants to families wanting to take their child out of state to obtain sex change procedures, according to an Instagram post. (RELATED: Hospital Ends Trans Treatments For Minors Months After Whistleblower Alleged Doctors Pushed Kids Into Sex Changes)
Galileo Church Rev. Dr. Katie Hays told the Daily Caller News Foundation that they started the program because “Jesus calls us to be good neighbors.”
Abortion rights demonstrators and transgender rights activists gather during an International Women’s Day abortion rights demonstration at the Texas State Capitol on March 08, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Families wishing to apply must fill out a form to confirm that they have a “trans or gender-diverse child” and must be residents of one of North Texas’ 19 counties, according to the program’s website. The application also requires that the parents list a mental health provider, clergy person, nonprofit, or other individual who can confirm their child’s gender identity.
The application does not ask for the age of the child in question but notes that the parents must be the guardian and “legally authorized to seek medical care for the trans or gender-diverse minor,” according to the website. Hayes told the DCNF that they trust “parents, in cooperation with their family physicians, to make health care decisions for minors” when asked about age requirements for a grant.
Parents can apply for grants two times a year for “Gas, food, hotel; medical appointments and prescriptions; income replacement,” according to the nonprofit’s donor FAQ page. Hayes explained in a statement to the DCNF that the program has recieved multiple grant applications and approved one so far.
Galileo Church says in its mission statement that it works toward “justice for LGBTQ+ humans, and support the people who love them,” according to its website.
“We believe that God, through Christ, has welcomed all to God’s heart. Period,” the church’s website reads. “We want our society to reflect that, so we rally in Dallas or lobby in Austin or parade in Fort Worth or whatever it takes to get it done … We announce ongoing justice work through social media — FB, Twitter, Insta — because we’re light on our feet, just trying to keep up in a world that can be suddenly and seriously hostile to LGBTQ+ beloveds.”
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