Be a Beacon

Hi friends and family,

Olivia here! The next few paragraphs are my own ramblings about why your support for GiveSTL Day would be so appreciated. This year, your donations are more important than ever, as my organization navigates the Trump administration's twists and turns while continuing to fund and support Missouri health centers with Title X federal funding.

You may be aware that the Trump administration is coming after birth control access through Title X in a sinister way (read more about this in a NYT gift article here). A Substack article published on Monday asks, "Is Trump Taking Taxpayer Dollars for Contraception and Spending it on Erectile Dysfunction, Porn Addiction, and Faster Sperm?" As Program Manager for Missouri's Title X grantee, I can plainly and confidently tell you, yes, that is what they are trying to do. 

While that's horrifying enough, I'm fired up right now for an additional reason. Yesterday, during a congressional hearing, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley inaccurately and intentionally made misleading comments regarding Missouri’s Title X program. Hawley falsely conflated federal Title X services with abortion care and misrepresented Beacon's role in administering federal Title X funding in Missouri. While this is absolutely infuriating, it also energized me and my colleagues to kickstart this giving campaign. 

I'm proud to say that Beacon has been providing Title X services with integrity for over 40 years, and we will continue to do so; however, the Trump administration's control of federal grants has made funding precarious. If you're as revved up as I am about what the administration is doing and to turn that anger into action, I can promise you, a donation to Beacon would help Missourians access affordable, evidence-based reproductive healthcare, offered by excellent providers. 

Thank you for considering a donation. If you want to chat more about this (or commiserate), send me a text! 

💛Olivia

💜Your Support Matters

• 63% of Beacon’s patients live in deep poverty

• Nearly half have no health insurance

• Beacon’s network is statewide - reaching rural and urban areas throughout Missouri

• For many, visiting a Beacon-supported clinic was their only source of healthcare in the past year

• Beacon receives zero state funding for family planning 

• 60% of Missourians are concerned about future restrictions to birth control

When you give to Beacon, you are standing with people too often left behind by the system. You are saying: Everyone deserves dignity, care, and the freedom to decide their own future. 

And when you invite others in, we become more than a community. We become a movement. 

Thanks for lighting the way to a future where everyone has access to the reproductive care they need.