Brave Trails

I'm climbing the 7 Summits (the tallest mountain on each continent) to support Brave Trails -- a life changing summer camp for LGTBQ youth. 

Why??
Because I am a gay man who struggled with my identity as a kid, and LGBTQ young people STILL have it extremely hard (even in the US):

• 39% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered suicide in the last 12 months 
• 66% of LGBTQ youth report someone trying to change their sexual or gender identity
• 77% of LGBTQ youth report feeling depressed in the last week 

What is Brave Trails? [BraveTrails Video , Website ]
Brave Trails is a summer camp built by the LGBTQ community for today's LGBTQ youth. There are camp classics like archery and s'mores, but also dress-up closets and queer history lessons. It's colorful, it's silly, and most importantly it's a community where everyone is welcome. For instance, last year more than 50% of campers identified as non-cisgender.

I had a chance to visit BraveTrails in the summer of 2021 and it took my breath away. The freedom, joy, and connection I saw were awe-inspiring. When I was young, I wanted so badly to find other kids like me and role models; I can only imagine how a place like Brave Trails would have changed my life.


Posing with some campers after giving a Passion To Action presentation about climbing Everest

Posing with the one and only Pattiegonia who was also volunteering with Brave Trails!

*all stats from recent Trevor Project and HRC reports

How can you help?
Help me raise $100,000 so BraveTrails can expand their camp to more kids! 
Every donation is tax deductible and goes 100% to BraveTrails.

Thank you for helping me make a difference and wish me luck in my future climbs!

Next climb: Aconcagua (elevation 22,837')
Dec 29, 2021 - Jan 19, 2022

What climbs have I done so far?
I’ve finished 3 of the 7 summits already:

• Mt Everest (Asia): May 23, 2019
• Mt Kilimanjaro (Africa): Sept 30, 2019
• Vinson Massif (Antarctica): Dec 13, 2019