How to get the funding?

[GetItDone11]

How do you possibly come up with this amount of money? My boyfriend has already been to see the surgeon to get a quote and such. That appointment alone cost us $100. The surgery itself, just for top, will be over $10000. We have tried loans, but we can't ge approved for that much, and we are barely making it as it is now, so we don't have any extra to save. I have set up a donation page, but I don't know how to get people to see my page or how to get them to want to help. My boyfriend is so discouraged right now, and when the situation is brought it up he says, "It's never going to happen anyway, so why even bother thinking about it?" He often talks about suicide and while he talks about it candidly, I'm afraid someday something might push him over the edge to actually do it.

[wheat thins are delicious]

Get more than one job.  Save as much as possible by cutting out any unnecessary spending, it may take a few years but it'll be worth it.

[caseyyy]

Andy said it, short and sweet.

You'd really be surprised the places you can cut a few dollars here and there. One guy on here, if I remember correctly, started drinking water instead of soda and found it added up a bit. Small things like that make a difference. But yeah, the second job is pretty much needed to come up with the major chunk of it, if it's possible to do so.

[Z7Z]

Patience, young grasshopper.

(I don't remember what movie that quote is from but I've been dying to use it )

The best thing to do, as Andy and Caseyyy have said, to get another job and just keep saving.

Another option is to see if there are any other surgeons you might consider who will do it cheaper than your quoted $10,000--I know Dr. Garramone does top surgery for between $5,900 and $6,500 depending on which surgical method you opt for. http://drgarramone.com/transgenderflorida/html/cost.html

From what I've seen, Dr. Garramone seems to be one of the best surgeons out there for top surgery. So that's a quick way to save a few thousand, just check out the other options you have. And most surgeons should either list their price ranges on their websites, or you can send a quick email to them about it and they should let you know about how much you'll expect to pay. That way you can avoid any more "consultation fees" until after you've picked a surgeon. 

If you really want people to donate, I suggest you create a YouTube channel if you don't already have one, and link it to your donation page. That's probably the easiest way to get the word out, assuming you've already posted stuff on FaceBook etc. Don't get your hopes up about it, though; your job(s) will no doubt be the main funding source. 

[wheat thins are delicious]

I add to the don't get your hopes up part about donations.  The only guys who get a ton of online donations are the ones who are youtube and/or tumblr famous. 

I know one guys who got a whole bunch of those rubber wrist bracelets, kinda like the livestrong ones, that said "testosterone" or something like that and sold them for a couple bucks each.

An IRL benefit in your local trans/lgb community would be a good option.  I've been thinking about doing that.  I know some folks who are willing to donate their services as drag queens, folks to loan me tables, chairs, etc.  You could charge people to get in and have drinks/food/entertainment.  That would be a good fundraiser and more likely to be successful than trying for donations online.

Plus you will be providing something instead of basically begging off people, which is what asking for donations online is. 

[Felix]

No matter how you go about it, it's probably vital that he find a way to be okay in the process. I don't know how I'll get top surgery, and my breasts gross me out all the time, but if it starts feeling like I have to have it right now...well it's hard enough to get up every day as it is, and that extra burden of desperation might be too much for anybody. It is too much for some people.

Anyway, I agree that "start saving now" is the best advice. It'll add up with time and diligence.

[wheat thins are delicious]

No matter how you go about it, it's probably vital that he find a way to be okay in the process.

This.  I've actually gotten to the point where I can mostly block out my chest when I'm not bound and it really helps get by day to day, especially since I can't bind 24/7.

[GetItDone11]

Thanks for the replies. I can't fit any more work into my schedule. I have already picked up extra clients in my job. My boyfriend is looking into getting another job, but he can't drive right now, I have to drive him to and from the job he has now. He won't really ride the bus because its really hot were we live most of the time (get's to about 110+ degrees over the summer), and he sweats a lot. I did just buy him some binders online yesterday, to see if that would maybe help him. We don't live extravagantly as it is now. We receive food stamps from the state which help a little with our groceries, and we eat mostly macaroni and cheese and ramen noodles.

I would like to do some kind of fundraiser, but James wouldn't do anything big that might alert anybody to the fact that he is transgender. I was trying to think of something small and simple that I could do, like selling something and saying it was for a different reason, so no one would find out about him.

[wheat thins are delicious]

I think your best bet is to sell something online.  I mentioned the bracelets already, I know a guy who sells tiedye to raise money for his surgery, you could sell possessions you don't need anymore.  I don't know how feasable this is but you could collect cans/bottles and sell them if you have a place that does that. 

[Felix]

This might be getting a little left field, but you or he could participate in medical or psychological research. I do that occasionally. The health department paid me $50 to participate in a client feedback discussion once. I was in a smoking study for awhile where they'd call me every few months and ask about my smoking habits, and they sent me $20 each time.

I would absolutely not recommend "donating" plasma. That's not healthy.

If you have major bookstores in your area, you can get books at garage sales or thrift stores and resell them.

I've heard some people have success making and selling things on Etsy, but I'm not familiar with it.

And you might be surprised at what all you can manage to sell on ebay and craigslist.

Just ideas, of course.

[GetItDone11]

Andy, do you by chance, know where I could get those kinds of bracelets? And where/how did he sell them?

Felix, I have thought about doing research studies before. How do you find out about them?

[wheat thins are delicious]

It was a guy on tumblr and I had to search back in his page cause he's inactive now but he said on there he used this company: http://www.reminderband.com/

Here's a link to where he was selling them: http://kyintees.blogspot.com/ and I guess he marketed them on his tumblr and other places.

[Felix]

Andy, do you by chance, know where I could get those kinds of bracelets? And where/how did he sell them?

Felix, I have thought about doing research studies before. How do you find out about them?

I have to admit I usually find out about them without looking. The last one I did was an HIV study out of Berkeley looking at condom use habits in transpeople who sleep with men, and I heard of it from a yahoo lgbt listserv. The smoking one happened after I was approached in person and asked while on the OHSU campus. I occasionally get asked by the various agencies that help me and my special needs kid. When I was in college I'd sometimes see them posted on bulletin boards in the halls. Sometimes they'll be listed in the back pages of the local free papers.

That's a rambly list. To answer better, I don't really know, but there's probably something online set up to hook up researchers with study participants.

[Max]

Everyone else has made excellent suggestions. For the general saving process, have you opened a high yield savings account? Of course the yield will not be as high as before, but several places offer better rates than many brick and mortar banks. A quick search will reveal 'em.

With regards to the donation page: have you tried using social media to signal boost? Even if you aren't on Facebook, Twitter, etc. you could ask friends to post it for you. Some guys have success posting it on Tumblr and others will happily signal boost.

When it comes to stretching a dime into a dollar though it takes out-of-the-box thinking.