♡︎ vi's gender affirming surgery fund ♡︎

Hi there, I'm Vi. You may know me by Levi, or “lone lee”, or you may not know me at all. I am a trans woman living in Austin, Texas, and I am scheduled to get facial feminization surgery (FFS) in just a couple months. However, I am not able to afford this on my own, as it is difficult to save up after making ends meet working at my food service job, so I am asking for help in making this gender affirming surgery a reality.

Why is FFS important to me? Being a trans woman who had to undergo male puberty, I developed facial features from testosterone that are typically associated with the male gender, often resulting in people perceiving me as male, which of course is very difficult to deal with as this does not align with who I am and how I perceive myself. This makes simple tasks such as traveling through small towns or meeting new people a daunting internal battle fueled by fear of judgment and a lack of understanding from others, leading to persisting distress. Not to mention, there is a lot of transphobia and general hatred towards people like myself in our current political climate, especially living in the conservative state of Texas, which causes me to fear facing harassment, or even a hate crime.

All I want is to better blend in with other women, and not have to constantly worry about getting misgendered for the preservation of my mental health and safety. FFS would help erase some of my masculine facial features, such as a more prominent Adam’s apple and brow ridge. Just as most (if not all) trans people, I have experienced tremendous gender dysphoria from getting misgendered due to living in a body and wearing a face that don’t entirely align with my brain and who I am internally, which has led to depression, anxiety, and feeling like I just do not fit in this world.

Who am I? I am a 25 year old from the Dallas/Fort Worth area who moved to Austin in 2017 to study Arts & Entertainment Technology at the University of Texas. My social transition began about three and a half years ago, and I have been on hormone replacement therapy for a little over three years now. I work in the cafe of a restaurant, making drinks and taking customers’ orders.

Some of my favorite things include: learning about urban planning and public transit, producing electronic music, discovering new music, collecting vinyls and CDs, and dancing to live music. I have also been a local DJ since I first moved to Austin 6 and a half years ago, playing at various clubs, venues, warehouses, Co-Ops, houses and drainage tunnels across town. I first started teaching myself how to DJ and produce music when I was about 13, thinking I was going to be a big famous DJ one day.

I listen to A LOT of music, but my favorite music lately has been grunge, shoegaze, darkwave/post-punk, witch house, electronic body music, and various forms of metal and hardcore. I was classically trained as a violinist for 11 years, which is what really spurred my deep relationship with music.

Now, the most fulfilling part of my life is getting to organize shows/raves that are safe spaces for trans and queer people, which often highlight and uplift talent from the LGBTQ+ community. Getting to coordinate shows not only allows me to express my creativity and share music that inspires me, it makes me feel like I am doing something that matters, and creating memories that people will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

What I am raising money for:

I honestly have trouble asking for help from people, especially when it comes to money, but I wouldn't be asking if I had any chance of making this happen on my own. If you have the means, I ask that you please consider donating if you can, because it really would help me finally feel free by closer aligning me physically with who I know I am and radically benefit my life.

Even if you can't donate, just sharing to people you know would mean so much to me. Every little bit counts, and I'm so grateful for everyone who supports me <3