Share the Plate

February’s Share the Plate has a Matching Challenge to Create a UUCOD Scholarship for Safe Schools Desert Cities.

On Sunday, February 19th, our beloved community will have the unique opportunity to sponsor its own scholarship for Safe Schools Desert Cities. Two Members have generously issued a $500 matching challenge to fully fund a $1000 scholarship. This means if we collect $500 from the offering, they will match it with $500. If we raise a minimum of $1000, a scholarship will be listed as sponsored by UUCOD. How cool is that!

Each year, twenty to thirty LGBTQ+ students receive scholarships from Safe Schools Desert Cities to support their postsecondary education. Students receiving these scholarships often comment that the support for them personally to be who they are is as important as the funding they receive.

Safe Schools Desert Cities also provides educational and social activities for students including the Rainbow Youth Summit and the annual Pride Prom. They work directly with area schools to empower LGBTQ+ youth, allies, and advisors through education, guidance, and opportunities for self-expression. Working with over 30 Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) clubs in middle and high schools in the Coachella Valley and surrounding communities including Banning, Beaumont, Yucca Valley, and Twentynine Palms, GSA clubs provide a safe, welcoming, and accepting environment for all youth, regardless of their sexuality and gender identification.

Please give as generously as you are able to help create the UUCOD Scholarship!

Find out more about Safe Schools Desert Cities.