Supporting LGBTQ+ youth through our partnership with The Trevor Project
At Cencora and the Cencora Impact Foundation, we recognize that Pride is more than a moment in time and our support for the LGBTQ+ community shouldn’t be limited to one month out of the year. That’s why we host inclusion-focused programming throughout the year and work closely with our partners that address the needs of the LGBTQ+ community to ensure the impact we make is consistent from month to month and cumulative over time.
One such partnership is the mutually beneficial relationship the Cencora Impact Foundation has developed with The Trevor Project, the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people. The Trevor Project has trained staff and volunteers who answer calls, chats, or texts from LGBTQ+ young people struggling with issues like depression and suicide ideation. They use a clinical model to de-escalate young people and help them stay safe.
One such partnership is the mutually beneficial relationship the Cencora Impact Foundation has developed with The Trevor Project, the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people. The Trevor Project has trained staff and volunteers who answer calls, chats, or texts from LGBTQ+ young people struggling with issues like depression and suicide ideation. They use a clinical model to de-escalate young people and help them stay safe.
Shared purpose and passion
The vital work that The Trevor Project’s crisis counselors do every day is well aligned with the purpose of Cencora to create healthier futures. Similarly, the Cencora Impact Foundation’s mission is to improve the health and well-being of patient populations by partnering with organizations to expand access to care. Given The Trevor Project’s unique ability to connect with young people in need of mental health support, a partnership with this organization couldn’t be more fitting.
The Cencora Impact Foundation and The Trevor Project share a passion for ensuring that individuals of all backgrounds and identities have access to the resources and care services they need. Both organizations strive to support traditionally marginalized and vulnerable populations with the goal of keeping individuals safe and healthy.
Upon discovering this significant overlap in purpose and passion, the Cencora Impact Foundation began supporting The Trevor Project with a modest donation in 2017. This opened the door to developing a long-term partnership and led to increased financial support, which began the following year and has been ongoing ever since.
Upon discovering this significant overlap in purpose and passion, the Cencora Impact Foundation began supporting The Trevor Project with a modest donation in 2017. This opened the door to developing a long-term partnership and led to increased financial support, which began the following year and has been ongoing ever since.
“For several years now, The Cencora Impact Foundation has supported The Trevor Project's programs across crisis services, education, advocacy, research, and TrevorSpace, supporting our technological infrastructure, program operations, and staff capacity,” said Maggie Kennedy, Corporate Partnerships Manager, The Trevor Project. “Thanks to our generous partners, including the Cencora Impact Foundation, we’re now serving almost 4 times as many youth as we were in 2018 when we launched our official partnership!”
Evolving our partnerships
Early grant funding from the Cencora Impact Foundation supported the creation of The Trevor Project's digital training platform for volunteers and the enhancement of their volunteer management infrastructure. This helped expand the operating capacity of their crisis services team with a focus on adequate staffing for high-volume timeframes, such as overnight hours.
More recent funding has been focused on driving continued awareness for crisis services among diverse LGBTQ+ young people. This included integrating crisis services with the new 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, allowing LGBTQ people experiencing a mental health crisis to simply dial 988 to reach a Trevor Project crisis counselor.
In terms of how future funding from the Cencora Impact Foundation will aid The Trevor Project, Maggie Kennedy said, “As we continue to grow, your support will help us remain laser focused on quality, providing new tools and resources to our volunteers to ensure they’re equipped to provide the highest quality of care to the LGBTQ+ young people who rely on us. In this next grant period, Trevor expects to serve a grand total of 470,000 crisis contacts through Trevor U.S., Trevor Mexico, and the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.”
More recent funding has been focused on driving continued awareness for crisis services among diverse LGBTQ+ young people. This included integrating crisis services with the new 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, allowing LGBTQ people experiencing a mental health crisis to simply dial 988 to reach a Trevor Project crisis counselor.
In terms of how future funding from the Cencora Impact Foundation will aid The Trevor Project, Maggie Kennedy said, “As we continue to grow, your support will help us remain laser focused on quality, providing new tools and resources to our volunteers to ensure they’re equipped to provide the highest quality of care to the LGBTQ+ young people who rely on us. In this next grant period, Trevor expects to serve a grand total of 470,000 crisis contacts through Trevor U.S., Trevor Mexico, and the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.”
Empowering LGBTQ+ allies at Cencora
While our partnership with The Trevor Project has enabled them to expand the impact of their life-affirming services, our relationship with the organization certainly isn’t a one-way street. Cencora team members have had numerous opportunities to engage with The Trevor Project through information sessions and workshops, including a very successful allyship training in April 2024.
For this session, the Cencora Impact Foundation partnered with The Trevor Project and Cencora’s LGBTAllies employee resource group (ERG) to host a virtual training that brought together more than 140 attendees from across the enterprise. The session focused on increasing understanding and action-oriented allyship to promote positive health outcomes for LGBTQ+ young people. Attendees participated in a facilitated discussion about what it means to be an authentic ally of LGBTQ+ people and received valuable takeaways that they could begin putting into practice immediately. Team members said the content was extremely informative and left them feeling educated, prepared, and empowered, according to an anonymous feedback survey shared after the event.
Beyond live sessions like this, The Trevor Project has also provided our team members with supplementary resources to help them continue making progress on their ally journey at their own pace. They’ve recommended everything from simple references for beginners, like how to signal you’re an ally, to more robust guides for engaged LGBTAllies ERG members, like being an ally to transgender and nonbinary young people. These invaluable resources, and the insightful guidance behind the recommendations, are helping our team members live our purpose by boldly supporting the LGBTQ+ community and creating more inclusive spaces where everyone can thrive.
For this session, the Cencora Impact Foundation partnered with The Trevor Project and Cencora’s LGBTAllies employee resource group (ERG) to host a virtual training that brought together more than 140 attendees from across the enterprise. The session focused on increasing understanding and action-oriented allyship to promote positive health outcomes for LGBTQ+ young people. Attendees participated in a facilitated discussion about what it means to be an authentic ally of LGBTQ+ people and received valuable takeaways that they could begin putting into practice immediately. Team members said the content was extremely informative and left them feeling educated, prepared, and empowered, according to an anonymous feedback survey shared after the event.
Beyond live sessions like this, The Trevor Project has also provided our team members with supplementary resources to help them continue making progress on their ally journey at their own pace. They’ve recommended everything from simple references for beginners, like how to signal you’re an ally, to more robust guides for engaged LGBTAllies ERG members, like being an ally to transgender and nonbinary young people. These invaluable resources, and the insightful guidance behind the recommendations, are helping our team members live our purpose by boldly supporting the LGBTQ+ community and creating more inclusive spaces where everyone can thrive.
A brighter future together
Moving forward, the Cencora Impact Foundation will support The Trevor Project’s focus on increasing the number of volunteers they can train, expanding the operating capacity of their crisis services team, and driving awareness of their services among LGBTQ+ youth. Meanwhile, the LGBTAllies ERG will continue encouraging their members to leverage what they’ve learned from various interactions with The Trevor Project and volunteer as crisis counselors.
“The Cencora Impact Foundation has played a pivotal role in Trevor’s significant growth over the last several years,” said Maggie Kennedy. “And we’re excited to invite you all into Trevor’s next chapter of continued impact and sustainability!”
“The Cencora Impact Foundation has played a pivotal role in Trevor’s significant growth over the last several years,” said Maggie Kennedy. “And we’re excited to invite you all into Trevor’s next chapter of continued impact and sustainability!”
