Framed by three pillars — creativity, shelter and advancement — Wray Ward’s EmpoWWer service-grant program supports deserving organizations while allowing our staff to help advance important causes. That’s why we were honored to select PFLAG Charlotte for one of four service grants in 2022.

Founded in 1973 by Jeanne Manford after she attended a parade with her gay son, PFLAG is a national nonprofit dedicated to supporting, educating and advocating for LGBTQ+ people and their families. Like its parent organization, PFLAG Charlotte serves as a bastion of inclusion for all people. Chapter leaders believed Wray Ward could help improve the lives of Charlotte residents and families who may experience marginalization simply because of who they are or how they identify.

The Challenge

PFLAG offers open and welcoming spaces for parents, caregivers, LGBTQ+ community members and allies. They also provide workshops for the workplace, health care practices, faith communities, schools and peer support group meetings.

Therein laid our challenge: Could Wray Ward help PFLAG educate the community about these resources in a manner that felt authentic to the real, heartfelt stories of the facilitators?

If you asked about the impact we hoped to have, we could easily slip into marketing speak: Target audiences. Consideration tactics. KPIs. But that wouldn’t get to the heart of how we hoped to help spark a connection on a person-to-person level.

With that, we set out to build on the already incredible impact of these workshops via two concise videos.

The Solution

Note: The completed work is not being disclosed publicly to protect the privacy of video participants. Keep reading to learn about the purpose and mission of these videos.

Video 1: Gender-Affirming Health Care

The first video focuses on a family physician who talks through the meaning of gender-affirming health care and why family members are vital to the health and wellness of LGBTQ+ individuals.

Consider that in four years of instruction, medical students receive less than five hours of training on LGBTQ+ care. This disparity makes it critical that care providers know how to answer the question, “How do I affirm an individual?” and support their LGBTQ+ patients.

Video 2: Navigating Your Journey

The second video covers PFLAG Charlotte’s Navigating Your Journey workshop. Here, parents and caregivers learn how to provide support as their loved ones embark on a journey of self-discovery and come to terms with their individual gender identity. The video tells this important story via a Charlotte family who received support from PFLAG throughout their son’s transition, including the challenges they encountered.