Trevor Project receives $45M donation from MacKenzie Scott

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (KESQ) - The Trevor Project, a West Hollywood nonprofit known for its hotline for LGBTQ+ youth, has received a $45 million donation from philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott after the Trump administration cut its funding, it was announced today.

The organization's national suicide-prevention hotline has been accessible by dialing 988 since 2022. The following year, an option was added to the hotline to provide specialized counseling to LGBTQ+ youth, who could press the number 3 on their phones to access the service. The service had been provided locally by The Trevor Project.   

In July, however, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration eliminated funding for the "Press 3" option for LGBTQ+ youth.

Shortly afterward, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors directed its Department of Mental Health to develop a pilot program restoring services tailored for LGBTQ+ youth to the suicide-prevention hotline.

On Monday, The Trevor Project announced that Scott had made the donation at the end of 2025 in support of the organization's long-term efforts for LGBTQ+ youth.

Jaymes Black, chief executive of The Trevor Project, said in a blog post that Scott's gift -- the single largest one-time donation in the organization's 27-year history -- comes at "a pivotal moment for our organization and the LGBTQ+ young people we serve."  

Black said the gift "is a powerful step toward building on our sustainable capacity -- but our organization will continue to face one of the largest public health crises of our time: LGBTQ+ youth suicide."

Research shows that LGBTQ+ young people are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their peers, Black said.   

"The Trevor Project's latest study found that, sadly, the mental health crisis among LGBTQ+ youth in the U.S. is getting worse, showing increasing rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidality for these young people over time."  

Black said the organization received a $6 million gift from Scott in 2020.   

"We are committed to investing this funding with great care,'' Black said. "Over the coming months, we will roadmap a strategic and thoughtful investment plan focused on strengthening our core crisis services, improving long-term sustainability, and accelerating our progress toward a world where every LGBTQ+ young person knows they are loved and supported."  

Scott, 55, was married to Jeff Bezos, the co-founder of Amazon, from 1993 to 2019. In 2006, Scott won an American Book Award for her debut novel, "The Testing of Luther Albright." Her second novel, "Traps," was published in 2013.