{"id":81837,"date":"2026-01-20T09:50:51","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T14:50:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thestoryexchange.org\/?p=81837"},"modified":"2026-01-20T09:51:54","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T14:51:54","slug":"mackenzie-scott-throws-lgbtq-youth-hotline-major-lifeline-45-million-donation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thestoryexchange.org\/mackenzie-scott-throws-lgbtq-youth-hotline-major-lifeline-45-million-donation\/","title":{"rendered":"MacKenzie Scott Throws LGBTQ+ Youth Hotline a Lifeline with $45 Million Donation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"The
The Trevor Project runs an independent hotline that reaches about 250,000 LGBTQ+ young people each year. (Credit: Christian Lue on Unsplash) \n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s one bright spot in a ceaselessly punishing news cycle: MacKenzie Scott, whose donations totaled a whopping $7.2 billion in 2025, gave a previously unannounced $45 million<\/a> gift to The Trevor Project<\/a>, an LGBTQ+ youth hotline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gift marks a drastic turn in the crisis support organization\u2019s fortunes after the Trump administration slashed $25 million in funding for gay, trans and gender-nonconforming youth who used the 988 National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which is staffed in part by The Trevor Project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jaymes Black, CEO of The Trevor Project, said the infusion of cash is critical as the organization has experienced budget turmoil and layoffs along with the loss of federal funding.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Related<\/h4>\n <\/div>\n \n
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\n \n MacKenzie Scott Has Now Donated Over $6 Billion to Charities, Causes\n <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re calling this our turnaround story,\u201d Black said, according to Scripps News<\/a>. Black added that when they found out about Scott\u2019s gift at the end of 2025, \u201cI actually gasped.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The organization is deciding how to best use the windfall to achieve the highest impact, but leaders will \u201ccontinue to be really intentional and really mindful around growth and what growth really means for the organization,\u201d Black said. The 988 hotline received 16.5 million contacts since it launched in July 2022, including 11.1 million calls, 2.9 million texts, and 2.4 million chats, according to KFF Health News<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Trevor Project continues to run an independent hotline that reaches about 250,000 LGBTQ+ young people each year, according to Scripps News, but lost its reach to about 250,000 more callers in crisis when the 988 hotline was defunded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scott, who was married to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos before they divorced in 2019, has made a point of giving away her billions to progressive causes and nonprofits focused on equity and social justice. She recently donated millions to historically black colleges and universities, and she was recently named by Forbes<\/a> as the third most generous philanthropist.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Related<\/h4>\n <\/div>\n \n
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\n \n MacKenzie Scott Gives Away $4.2 Billion to Organizations That Need It Most. Hint: Not Amazon\n <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The billionaire philanthropist continues her streak of funding equity and social justice causes and nonprofits.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":143,"featured_media":81853,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[{"did":"did:plc:l2n6ydtigm3gtra4vb4rfl7f","date":"2026-01-20T14:50:55+00:00","uri":"at:\/\/did:plc:l2n6ydtigm3gtra4vb4rfl7f\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3mcufro6b2327","response":"{\"uri\":\"at:\/\/did:plc:l2n6ydtigm3gtra4vb4rfl7f\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3mcufro6b2327\",\"cid\":\"bafyreidr7dl3ggb4xtjstx6qhobkau545xtq2gsmoppehi2fyfu2c5yecq\",\"commit\":{\"cid\":\"bafyreicnykgpniyxqsynmtmof7xvwkrhvmdnfja7y3c2zyklhkrwb7ko6i\",\"rev\":\"3mcufro6iu327\"},\"validationStatus\":\"valid\"}"}],"autoblue_post_url":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[21301,19558,20186,19659],"class_list":["post-81837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-happening-now","tag-lgbtq-support","tag-philanthropy","tag-social-justice","tag-women-in-philanthropy"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMacKenzie 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