Uplift LGBTQ+ Youth Outreach Center

How Snack Closets Provide a Safe Haven for Queer and Trans Youth | Eater

"Founded out of a parent’s impulse to create a safe adolescence for their trans child, this Spartanburg drop-in space centers a well-stocked snack closet alongside a full kitchen where young people can bake, heat meals, or make pancakes for dinner. Packets of Ritz Bits, Oreos, pretzels and family-size boxes of Takis and Tostitos are organized into plastic bins, and staff intentionally use food to lower barriers to conversation and participation. When the center hosted a pleasure-focused sexual-health workshop with an affirming provider, the casual, living-room atmosphere created by snacks helped shy attendees open up and ask questions they otherwise wouldn’t, demonstrating how food transforms programs from punitive to welcoming." - Colleen Hamilton