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TAVA President Message
 Welcome to the sixth issue of The Transgender American Veterans Association (TAVA) e-Newsletter! The aim of this publication is to keep you informed of new initiatives of TAVA and updates concerning the transgender veteran community. The TAVA e-Newsletter is published quarterly. Each issue brings you the latest information on new TAVA initiatives, TAVA partners, conferences TAVA will send a representative to, and news items that are of interest for the transgender veteran.
To make sure you stay connected, please subscribe to TAVA's quarterly newsletter via the TAVA website. We also encourage our followers to join and/or renew your membership. For more information on TAVA membership, please visit: http://bit.ly/2crZ1aV. We hope you find the TAVA e-Newsletter as a valuable resource in collecting information about TAVA and the issues concerning you, the transgender veteran. We welcome your suggestions and feedback. You can contact us directly on the website at http://transveteran.org/contact-us-page/.
Evan Young
MAJ, U.S. Army (Ret.)
National President,
Transgender American Veterans Association (TAVA)
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Support TAVA each time you shop with AmazonSmile
Anytime you shop with AmazonSmile, you can elect  to
have a small proceed of your purchases go to TAVA. Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases to the charitable organization of your choice.
What a great way to support transgender veterans! Be
sure to select TAVA to add our organization as your charity of choice. To get started visit, https://smile.amazon.com/.
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Website Updates
Since our last e-Newsletter, the TAVA Board has
continued to make updates to the website. New
categories and updated resources have been added.
The information is presented in a user-friendly format
with the ease of simple navigation.
Check out our latest website additions...
- Passport Facility Locator - makes it fast and easy to locate your nearest passport acceptance facility.
- Journalist Tips - guidance for those writing on trans veterans and active duty service members.
- For The History Books - collection of transgender veteran videos.
- Trans Support Locator - includes new VA and local peer support group listings. Find your nearest trans support group or submit a location listing.
- Recommended Links - new categories of resources have been added to this growing section including Government; Legal; LGBT Veteran and Military; National/Federal Agencies; VA and VA-related forms.
- State Veteran Benefits - Click on a state for benefit information such as State Veteran Affairs Education Benefits; Financial Assistance; Employment Resources; Housing Links; Legal Resources; and other State Veteran Benefits info.
Stay tuned as we continue to make more updates......
- T-Blog - In our TBlog, we tell you about our battles and share messages that inspire us and hopefully you too.
- Speaker's Bureau
- TAVA Historical Timeline
- Name and Gender Change Assistance
- Wreath Laying at Tomb of Unknown Solider (Summer/Fall)
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TAVA Membership
 Members are the foundation of TAVA's strength. Our membership model allows anyone to join regardless
of financial ability. Choose what level best meet your needs and abilities. Your generous gift will help to enable TAVA’s programs, advocacy, and outreach
to be stronger and more effective. Become a member
and join a grassroots force which supports over 134,000 transgender veterans in their quest for equality. Visit http://bit.ly/2crZ1aV for more info.
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Show Your PRIDE!
We heard your request and now have a website shop! Get ready for our awesome selection and proudly display your support and pride. We are even adding items that will educate the public on trans issues.
Check out our current featured items...
 TAVA T-Shirt
TAVA short and long sleeve t-shirts for sale
for a limited time (available until Mar 3).
Show your pride as a transgender veteran. Visit https://teespring.com/tava to buy yours today!
 TAVA Patch
One of a kind sew-on 3″ patch with official logo of
the Transgender American Veterans Association.
Exclusively available on the TAVA website for
veterans and allies. Proudly display your support to
TAVA. Makes a great gift. Limited supplies, so visit http://transveteran.org/shop/ and order yours now!
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TAVA Advocacy And Outreach
 As a grassroots organization, TAVA advocates for the fair and equal treatment of transgender military veterans and active duty service members through advocacy,
outreach, and assistance. TAVA
serves as an educational resource, providing outreach at various conferences, VA hospitals, VA
staff meetings, and panels. As
military veterans who have served
with pride, we continue to serve so that
others may serve openly and proudly, regardless of gender.
TAVA stands by to assist whenever and wherever we can. You inspire us to do better, taking action for every veteran and waking each morning to fight even harder than the day before.
 TAVA President Featured in Google's #transvoices
TAVA President Evan Young is one of three inspiring people featured in Google's #transvoices project. Google’s #transvoices tells the stories of inspiring changemakers who are redefining what it means to be transgender in our country today. Watch their journeys and help raise awareness for trans equality. Watch Evan's story here.
 TAVA President Assists Google with Resources for Naval Academy Presentation
TAVA President Evan Young provided Google with transgender 101 resources and materials for their Naval Academy presentation. The presentations included faculty, staff, and midshipmen training sessions. TAVA should receive handwritten feedback soon.
 TAVA Board Member Named One of LGBTQ Nation’s Top 50 Successful Transgender People
Congratulations to TAVA Board Member Zander Keig on being named one of LGBTQ Nation’s top 50 successful transgender people you should know about. To read the article and full list, visit http://bit.ly/2j7OnXa.
 TAVA Board Member Quoted in Reuters Article
TAVA Media Director & Veteran Affairs Officer, Denny Meyer, was quoted in Reuters November 11 article "First U.S. transgender soldiers make gender transition after policy shift." Denny said in a telephone interview "Transgender service members have been the most discriminated against." "They need to see the handwriting on the wall, that, yes, the Pentagon is doing what they promised."
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TAVA Upcoming Schedule
- 16 February 2017 - San Diego LGBT Military Service Members and Families Meeting - San Diego LGBT Center - San Diego, CA.
- TBD, February 2017 - New York University Medical Center, LGBT Vets Cultural Competency for Staff, New York, NY.
- TBD, March 2017 - STRONG Stakeholder Meeting - Emory University, Atlanta, GA.
- 02 March 2017 - Cal Vet Winter Conference - LGBT Cultural Competency Training - Sacramento, CA.
- 13 March 2017 - Presentation - University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg VA.
- 25 March 2017 - Neutral Corner - San Diego, CA.
- 22 April 2017 - California Association of Alcohol / Drug Educators Conference - Sheraton Gateway LAX, Los Angeles, CA.
- 27 April 2017 - Keynote Address - Texas A&M University, Central Texas.
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Make Your Voice Heard
TAVA has compiled important surveys, petitions and
studies for the transgender veteran community. Your
voice matters and is critical to the process of collecting
data and providing important feedback. Feel free to
share these with other transgender veterans you may
know.
- DD-214 Survey
TAVA's survey available online for those veterans who attempted to change their DD-214 and received a response back from their service board. The survey can be found on our website and at this link: http://transveteran.org/dd-form-214/.
- DD-214 Discharge Upgrade/Name Change Survey
TAVA survey for those wishing to upgrade or change their name on their DD-214. We have partnered with a pool of experienced attorneys who provide free legal representation to veterans in upgrading their discharge status and changing their name on their DD-214. If you are interested, please fill out the following survey - http://svy.mk/2lmjouh.Your responses
will help us get a handle of the need for assistance.
- VHA Related Care Survey
If you are a veteran who uses the VA for their healthcare needs, we want to hear from you. Please take the TAVA VA related care survey located at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TDV9J63.
- Lambda Legal and Transgender Law Center Petition VA to Provide Surgery for Transgender Veterans
Lambda Legal and Transgender Law Center, with co-counsel WilmerHale, petitions the VA on behalf of TAVA and group of individual veterans to change the ruling that excludes transition related surgery for transgender veterans. Read the petition filed here: http://bit.ly/1VPnhmz. Sign the petition here: http://bit.ly/1YgW3FM.
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Department of Defense (DoD) News
Updates out of the Department of Defense (DoD)...
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Veteran Affairs (VA) News
TAVA is your liaison to the Department of Veterans  Affairs. We actively advocate for transgender veterans at the VA level by providing input and advice internally. Daily, we assist veterans in coming out to their primary care doctors. We also assist in answering questions and providing needed clarifications on the VA health care directive for transgender care. If you experience any issues with the VA, please contact us. Visit http://bit.ly/2cseMyx.
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True Stories of Transgender Service in Our Armed Forces
Trans Veterans Lives is an ongoing TAVA project which features stories of transgender veterans from across the world. We want to hear from you. We want to tell your story. Please contact our media director, Denny Meyer, at media@transveteran.org if you have a story that you want to share. We look forward to hearing from YOU!
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2015 U.S. Trans Survey Report Now Available
The 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey report is now
available online to read. In addition to the full report, you can read the Executive Summary and watch
the report launch event. Chapter 12 covers Military Service, which contains data on Veterans. Read
the full report here: http://bit.ly/2kkBtaf
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TransMilitary
 TAVA supports TransMilitary in their quest
to bring this documentary to the big screen. Funders and distributers have already complimented this film but want to see a
rough cut before they invest. Find out how
to donate so that this feature documentary
is playing on a big screen near you soon! http://bit.ly/2d4vYMl
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Now you can contact TAVA by phone (516) TAVA-911
©2013 Transgender American Veterans Association (TAVA) 