Project Overview:
Previous to this project we seek to fund, our organization has only really been concerned with helping LGBT+ people with the travel costs that come with relocating to a new country. This new project at the Rainbow Railroad is aimed at helping these people in need past just the journey to a new country. We are hoping to get funding towards making housing available for them when they arrive in the U.S. So we will need to purchase a housing complex in Portland, Maine to be part of this program. For the first three months, those residing in our housing complex won’t have to worry about paying rent. After those three months have passed, the residents have the option either to remain where they are for another three months paying rent or they could move to a new place of their own. Other aspects of this program include public transportation access, English language learning through an internship program, and peer mentors from alumni of the project. The money we receive from the Pepper Foundation would go straight into purchasing a housing complex for LGBT+ relocating to the U.S. These funds will be a huge help in getting this amazing program off the ground. Additional funding will allow us to pay for three months of rent while these new citizens get everything they need for their new lives sorted out for themselves.
