Foyer Lavande: A Home for Healing, Creation, and Resistance

“We’re building something beautiful, because we refuse to live in fear.”

Foyer Lavande or “Lavender Hearth”, is a matriarchal refuge in Montpelier, Vermont — a sanctuary where trans people and their chosen kin can rest, grow, and thrive. It was founded in 2025 as a home for trans people seeking safety in these troubled times.

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🌈 What We're Building

Foyer Lavande is a multi-unit community home and cultural space.

• 💫 Safe housing for trans people and queer families
• 🍲 A communal kitchen to share food, stories, and solidarity
• 🛠️ A maker-space and salon for art, performance, and organizing
• 🔥 A hub for mutual aid, resilience, and resistance

⚠️ Why Now

Across the country, trans lives are under attack.

But survival isn’t enough - we deserve joy, rest, and a future.

We’re creating infrastructure for queer liberation. Not someday. Now. Here in Vermont.

It's very challenging under the best of circumstances to find employment and permanent housing in Vermont - by providing temporary housing and food, we make it possible for trans people to be able to save and build a stable foundation of support for themselves and make Vermont their home.

Your support makes it possible.

💖 How to Help

• Venmo: @VermontRises
• PayPal: Donate
• Check or larger gift? → Email us at flamekeeper@foyerlavande.org

Donations go directly toward renovation, rent stabilization, heat, and materials. When you donate via Venmo, please include in the note field: FOYERLAVANDE
(Foyer Lavande is supported by Vermont Rises Inc., a registered 501(c)(4). Contributions are not tax-deductible.)

🪞 Who I Am

Hi, I’m "Geri" - Wendy Geraldine Peterson. I’m a trans woman, organizer, and the steward of this home.

I’ve put everything I have - financially, emotionally, and spiritually - into creating Foyer Lavande. It’s not a shelter. It’s not a retreat. It’s a home, built on a vision of care, resistance, and matriarchal values.

This dream is real. But I can’t do it alone.

🛠️ What Your Donation Supports

• Rental assistance for trans people facing housing insecurity
• Insulation, heating, plumbing, and winterization
• Accessibility upgrades
• Shared meals, mutual aid distribution, and queer gatherings
• Local artwork and music projects

🧾 Transparency

We’re committed to financial integrity. If you want to see our budget, renovation progress, or get involved in governance, reach out directly.

🌱 Thank You

Your donation plants seeds.

Your care keeps the light on.

And your solidarity builds the world we need.

→ Donate now. Share widely. Come visit. Foyer Lavande is real!