When Nathan courageously came out as transgender at 14 years old in spring 2015 he had the support of his mother to help navigate the complexities of gender affirmation in a teenage world, but desperately sought peer engagement with like-minded teens. They searched for trans-and queer-specific support groups, but nothing was close enough for Nathan to attend regularly to build a community for himself, until he was introduced to Triple Point from a family friend whose child had been part of the group.
Nathan’s life changed for the better once he was introduced to Triple Point, a youth support group offered through Children’s Home Society of Washington to provide a safe, encouraging space for LGBTQ+ youth to be themselves. “Triple Point made me feel normal and validated for who I was. I never felt isolated, alone, or wrong for being who I was while I was at Triple Point,” Nathan said. “I made friends, learned more about my community, learned about all kinds of different resources in our area, and felt like I had adults in my life who understood and supported me.”
Nathan attended Triple Point support group meetings for four years before aging out of the program. In that time, his mother was able to attend monthly PFLAG meetings hosted by CHSW, for families and friends of LGBTQ+ people, offering an avenue to meet other families of trans kids and receive essential support and community from others with similar circumstances. The program provided necessary support for Nathan to feel connected to a community in order to prosper in life and offered his family a way to stay engaged and invested in their son’s wellbeing.
“Triple Point helped me feel like I was being set up for the future. I was also able to receive crucial therapy support afforded to me through CHSW,” Nathan stated. “To LGBTQ+ teens in the area looking for a way to belong: Triple Point can help you, too. There is so much the group can do to benefit you, while in High School and beyond; the group still means so much to me.”
Nathan is studying at WSU-V for a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology and dreams of being a writer and artist.
Kristen Conte is the director of marketing and communications at Children’s Home Society of Washington
