Horizons Foundation Awards Historic $1.46 Million in Grants to LGBTQ Nonprofits Amid Hostile Political Environment
San Francisco, CA—Horizons Foundation is proud to announce a historic $1.46 million in grant awards to 66 LGBTQ nonprofits and programs across the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area—the largest annual total in the foundation’s 45-year history. Through its flagship Community Issues (CI) funding program, Horizons is almost doubling last year’s amount, with half of this year’s awards granted as multi-year awards. This milestone investment underscores Horizons’ long-standing commitment to supporting and sustaining the Bay Area’s LGBTQ nonprofit ecosystem, especially during a period of intensifying political attacks and funding instability. View the full list of 2025 CI grantee partners.
This year’s grants—all of which fund general operating support—reach all 10 LGBTQ community centers in the Bay Area, alongside dozens of grassroots organizations providing essential services, advocacy, arts and culture, health programs, youth support, trans- and BIPOC-led initiatives, and more. The increased funding reflects the vibrance, complexity, and breadth of the region’s LGBTQ community by spanning diverse demographics, geographies, and service areas.
Responding to a Dangerous Political Climate
For 45 years, Horizons has worked to build and strengthen the Bay Area’s LGBTQ nonprofit ecosystem—an ecosystem that has responded to crises and weathered the AIDS epidemic, economic downturns, and repeated attempts to undermine LGBTQ rights and freedoms. Today’s political climate, marked by escalating attacks on LGBTQ people and organizations at federal, state, and local levels, poses one of the most significant threats in decades.
“This year’s Community Issues funding reflects a system-wide response to a system-wide crisis,” said Roger Doughty, Horizons Foundation President. “Our community’s nonprofits are facing mounting hostility and ongoing funding disruptions at the very moment their services are most urgently needed. This is what Horizons does best—we ensure that this ecosystem not only survives these attacks, but continues to innovate and thrive.”
"At a time of continued targeting by the Trump administration of the LGBTQ community, Horizons is stepping up with increased investment, demonstrating our commitment to supporting our LGBTQ nonprofits, especially BIPOC- and trans-led groups, communities that are too often overlooked by mainstream philanthropy," said Joshua Delfin, Horizons Foundation Senior Program Officer. "This funding helps these organizations pay staff, strengthen capacity, and recognize the leadership and labor that keep our communities alive."
Investing in a Strong, Resilient, and Innovative Future
At this crucial time, Horizons is doubling down on its commitment to trust-based philanthropy and ensuring that all CI grants in 2025 fund general operating support. This investment reinforces Horizons Foundation’s belief that a strong LGBTQ community requires a strong network of organizations—large and small, urban and rural, longstanding and newly-formed—working together to advance equity, safety, visibility, and wellbeing.
Horizons also implemented major updates this year to the Community Issues Funding Program, notably shifting to a systems-based grantmaking model designed to preserve and sustain the LGBTQ nonprofit landscape. These changes respond directly to the evolving needs and increased targeting of LGBTQ communities by the Trump administration and other hostile policymakers. Additionally, the increase in multi-year grants that make up 50% of the total CI awards demonstrates Horizons’ commitment to providing LGBTQ nonprofits with the opportunity to build and develop critical infrastructure to withstand today’s challenges
"Demand for our services has skyrocketed, but flexible funding is shrinking,” said Chase Overholt, Executive Director of Positive Images. “This funding helps Positive Images to meet emergent needs and stand firm in our affirming mental health, peer support, and leadership programs for LGBTQIA+ youth and adults across Sonoma County and the North Bay, regions that are often underserved and face heightened isolation and stigma.”
"With rising anti-immigrant policies and increased asylum denials nationwide, our work is critical to safeguarding the lives of LGBTQ+ people who are fleeing violence and persecution and seeking safety in the United States,” said Kenan Arun, Executive Director of the LGBT Asylum Project. “This funding allows us to continue providing 100% free legal representation to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers in the Bay Area, ensuring that some of the most vulnerable members of our community receive the protection and due process they deserve.”
“This funding from Horizons Foundation comes at a time when our communities face organized and government-sponsored attacks,” said T. Kebo Drew, CFRE, Managing Director of Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project (QWOCMAP). “It makes all of the care that we provide to youth—from crisis counselors to accessibility to other support—possible. It is this care that makes our Film & Freedom Academy successful. With this grant, QWOCMAP can deepen this work, which leads youth to feel cared for, important, and empowered.”
Horizons Foundation’s 2025 CI funding demonstrates its commitment to its vision of a world where all LGBTQ people live freely and fully. Click here for more information on the foundation’s flagship funding program and to learn more about Horizons' work.
About Horizons Foundation
Horizons Foundation is the first community foundation in the U.S. of, by, and for the LGBTQ community. Established in 1980, invests in LGBTQ organizations, strengthens a culture of LGBTQ giving, and builds a permanent endowment to secure our community’s future. We envision a world where all LGBTQ people live freely and fully. Learn more at horizonsfoundation.org.
