Get Help (Or Be The Help) This Holiday Season
13 Michigan-based queer support organizations where you can find community and give back
The holidays can feel heavy when you're queer. Maybe you're heading home to family members who don't get it, or avoiding home altogether. Maybe you're spending the season solo or building something new with friends who became family. This time of year has a way of highlighting what's missing, but it also illuminates what's possible when community shows up for each other.
Southeast Michigan's LGBTQ+ organizations are where chosen families form, where volunteers find purpose alongside the people they help and where someone walking through the door for the first time discovers they're not alone. Whether you need housing assistance, gender-affirming healthcare, a warm meal, mental health support or just a place to belong, these 13 organizations are ready to help. And whether you're looking for support or ready to give back with your time or a donation, there's a place for you here too.
Affirmations LGBTQ+ Community Center
Michigan's largest LGBTQ+ center offers support groups, affordable therapy and community events
Michigan's largest LGBTQ+ community center has been Southeast Michigan's queer living room for over 30 years, offering support groups for every identity, affordable therapy services and countless social events. Your donations keep programs accessible and volunteers help create the warm atmosphere that makes this space feel like home. goaffirmations.org
Corktown Health
Michigan's first LGBTQ+-focused medical home provides affirming healthcare for the whole person
As Michigan's first nonprofit LGBTQ+-focused medical home, Corktown Health provides primary care, HIV treatment, gender-affirming care, behavioral health services and dental care with providers who actually get it. Your contributions fund the sliding fee scale that ensures no one is turned away and supports training the next generation of affirming healthcare providers. corktownhealth.org
Ferndale Pride
Throws Michigan's largest free Pride festival and funds LGBTQ+ nonprofits year-round through grants
Yes, Ferndale Pride throws a fabulous festival each May that draws thousands to downtown Ferndale, but operating as a fiduciary of the Ferndale Community Foundation, they've distributed over $200,000 since 2011 to local LGBTQ+ nonprofits like Affirmations, Transgender Michigan and Gender Identity Network Alliance. Your donations and volunteer time turn Pride into year-round community support. ferndalepride.com
Gender Identity Network Alliance
Supports gender-diverse individuals and families through workshops, holiday gatherings and community events
Founded in 2005, GNA creates positive social change supporting all forms of gender identity and expression through educational workshops on topics like voice training and legal name changes, plus holiday potlucks for community members who've lost family support. Your donations fund programming while volunteers help create welcoming spaces where trans and gender-nonconforming folks can thrive. gnausa.org
Jim Toy Community Center
Washtenaw County's resource center creates community through advocacy, education and connection
Named for Michigan LGBTQ+ rights pioneer Jim Toy, this Washtenaw County resource center provides support groups, community events and advocacy by and for the queer community. Donations and volunteer time keep this grassroots organization responsive to what the community needs, whether you're out and proud or still figuring things out. jimtoycenter.org
LGBT Detroit
North America's leading Black LGBTQ+ organization centers Black queer joy and liberation
Since 1994, LGBT Detroit has created safe, brave spaces for Black queer folks with support groups for all LGBT identities, youth development programs and cultural celebrations like Hotter Than July, the world's second-oldest Black Pride. Your donations fund health initiatives and youth programs while volunteers help create community where Black queer experiences are centered. lgbtdetroit.org
MiGen
Michigan's only organization for LGBTQ+ adults 45+ helps elders age out loud
MiGen is Michigan's only organization dedicated specifically to LGBTQ+ adults 45 and older, offering everything from Medicare counseling and housing navigation to social programming and Michigan's first LGBTQ+ senior center in Ferndale. Volunteers make weekly supportive phone calls that combat isolation while donors fund services that help older queer adults age with dignity and joy. migenconnect.org
Ozone House
Supports homeless and at-risk youth with shelter, counseling and PrideZone for LGBTQ+ young people
Since 1969, Ozone House has supported homeless, runaway and at-risk youth in Washtenaw County with a 24/7 crisis hotline, emergency shelter, transitional housing and PrideZone, their weekly LGBTQ+ youth program for ages 12-24. Your donations and volunteer time keep the hotline staffed and shelter open for young people facing homelessness because of who they are. ozonehouse.org
Ruth Ellis Center
Provides housing, health services and support for LGBTQ+ youth of color ages 13-30
Named after Detroit activist Ruth Ellis who opened her home as a refuge in the 1940s, the Ruth Ellis Center serves LGBTQ+ youth ages 13-30 with 43 units of supportive housing, drop-in services, integrated healthcare through Henry Ford Health and case management. More than 90% of the young people served are Black, Indigenous or people of color, and your contributions help fund everything from housing to the art supplies that let young people express themselves. ruthelliscenter.org
Salus Center
Lansing's only 2SLGBTQIA+ community center brings queer folks together for connection and advocacy
Since 2017, Salus Center has served as Lansing's only 2SLGBTQIA+ community center with support groups, holiday gatherings and community events. As an all-volunteer organization, your donations literally keep the lights on while volunteers create the welcoming atmosphere that makes this downtown Lansing space feel like home. saluscenter.org
Stand with Trans
Empowers trans youth and families through therapy, support groups and the Trans Lifeline Library
Founded by parents who wanted to support their transgender children, Stand with Trans offers support groups for different age ranges, affordable therapy with specialists and the Trans Lifeline Library, a searchable directory of trans-affirming healthcare providers and resources across Michigan. Your donations fund therapy and support while volunteers help with events and education. standwithtrans.org
Transgender Michigan
Provides advocacy, support and education to unify and empower transgender communities
Transgender Michigan's mission is to provide advocacy, support and education while creating coalitions across the state to unify and empower transgender and gender-nonconforming communities. Your donations fund advocacy work, comprehensive resource guides and policy change efforts that protect trans rights throughout Michigan. transgendermichigan.org
Vivent Health (formerly UNIFIED)
Southeast Michigan's HIV service organization provides testing, treatment and comprehensive support
As Southeast Michigan's comprehensive HIV service organization serving 10 counties, Vivent Health provides free HIV and Hepatitis C testing, case management, housing assistance, food pantry access and harm reduction services. Your donations fund essential services like emergency housing support while volunteers bring testing and prevention directly to communities through street outreach and the mobile health unit. viventhealth.org
Read More
Detroit's Pride Season Goes Beyond the Festival
Looking to step outside the festival circuit this Pride season? Metro Detroit's LGBTQ+ choral community is offering two milestone anniversary concerts that make [...]
Madison Heights Cancels Drag Queen Storytime Days Before Pride Event
Update: Madison Heights has reversed this decision. Check out Jadein Black's Facebook page for the latest.A Madison Heights City Council vote to cancel a [...]
This Year, Everything Is on the Ballot
Pride Month is here. Along with celebrating our authentic selves, I think of June as a time to celebrate how far we have come — and how far we still need [...]
LGBTQ+ Seniors in Michigan Navigate a Housing System That Wasn't Built for Them
America's housing crisis lands hardest on the people least equipped to absorb it. For LGBTQ+ seniors, finding affordable, affirming housing carries stakes that [...]
Pride Source Wins Five SPJ Detroit Awards for LGBTQ+ Community Coverage
Pride Source staff members brought home five Detroit Society of Professional Journalists awards for their 2025 coverage at an awards ceremony on May 20, at the [...]
Every Box Tells a Story at This Ferndale Pride Fundraiser
If you handed a dozen Southeast Michigan artists a plain cigar box and told them to make something, you'd get a dozen completely different answers, and Small [...]
