Before founding Foo Society, Kyya Love’s work involved promoting and organizing fun events for the queer community. But after noticing an uptick in LGBTQ suicides in disadvantaged areas, Love felt a calling to serve a larger purpose.
“We started seeing a lot of suicides down here, so I felt like I needed to do something besides entertain our community,” Love said.
When she realized those in the Southwest Dade community had to travel to Broward or Miami to find support services, Love created Foo Society so LGBTQ people in the area had a “home base” to get help. The organization has evolved since its inception five years ago, offering services like mental health counseling, therapy and educational tutoring.
Foo Society recently partnered with the Miami-based LGBTQ org. Pridelines to open a shared community space located at 20464 S Dixie Highway, Cutler Bay. The space combines the efforts of both organizations to give the queer community a hub for mental and physical health support.
The support Foo Society provides changed Tiffany Francis’ life.
When Francis’ teenage daughter came out to her two years ago, Francis felt lost and confused. Her daughter didn’t feel seen, and Francis had trouble understanding her child’s identity.
But when Francis sought help for her daughter from Foo Society, everything changed. What started as counseling for her daughter turned into sessions they both attended to try to understand one another better.
“I was able to learn more and be able to connect with my daughter more,” Francis said. “[My daughter] wasn't expressing herself as she does now. Today I just feel like she feels understood, she feels accepted and she just feels free.”
Now, Francis volunteers with Foo Society to help parents and youth in similar situations.
Although Francis moved to Jacksonville a couple of months ago, she said being a few hundred miles away doesn’t take away her drive to help Foo Society reach its full potential.
“It works really well for me just to know that I can be involved with helping youth thrive in their lives, help them be hopeful and help them enjoy just being themselves,” Francis said.
Love said Foo Society’s rapid growth doesn’t mean the org is done expanding its services. In the future, she said she’s looking to open a tech school to provide educational paths for youth.
No plans have been solidified, but Love said the school would give students the opportunity to engage in subjects like entrepreneurship or arts.
Francis said she hopes more people, especially parents, take action to support organizations like Foo to give LGBTQ youth opportunities that haven’t always been available.
“I have family members that say, ‘I wish we had something like that growing up,’ because they now want to know how they can give [youth] what they didn't have,” Francis said. “I just did not know how much of an impact these organizations make on the community, and it needs to not be swept under the rug. I take pride in being a part of Foo Society.”
