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In response to the recent burial of a transgender woman in men’s clothes, ALRP conducted an outreach presentation on the importance of communicating end-of-life wishes. The woman’s family chose to bury her dressed as a man, underscoring the importance of documenting one’s wishes in advance.

Shortly after the woman’s funeral, ALRP Staff Attorney John Fasesky coordinated with another service provider to present an urgent estate planning program for transgender clients.

“People who had attended that funeral realized that they could be laid to rest in a way they’d never imagined possible,” said John. “It was a very powerful outreach because of that.”

John spoke to a group of transgender clients about safeguarding their rights through wills, advance health care directives, and financial powers of attorney. “People have a lot of misunderstandings about what their rights are,” he said. “I went over the importance of having an executor you can trust, and explained that you don’t have to name a family member to be your agent when you die.”

ALRP targets outreach activities to reach especially vulnerable populations. Unfortunately, transgender persons are disproportionately impacted by HIV. We were pleased to be able to provide this workshop during a time of community need and help participants ensure that their end-of-life wishes will be carried out.