Ky Walker understands what it means to search for proof that a future is possible.
Growing up, Walker was the only openly LGBTQ student at his school. He faced rejection from family and peers, while teachers and administrators struggled to support him. As a transgender young person navigating substance use, suicidality and mental health challenges, he often felt he had to find his way alone.
Then he found Compass LGBTQ Community Center.
“Coming to the youth trans group at Compass as a teenager saved my life,” Walker said. “For the first time, I met other LGBTQ+ people, and realized I wasn't alone.”
Walker, 24, is a queer transgender man living in West Palm Beach. He began volunteering with Compass’s Entourage young adult program at 18 and became a volunteer HIV tester. Today, he works in community health case management and oversees Entourage.
He also opened Compass’s Community Care Closet, which provides free gender-affirming clothing, hygiene products and snacks. Walker created Trans Connect, a peer-support program helping transgender and nonbinary people navigate social, legal and medical transitions.
His advocacy began at Florida Atlantic University, where he fought for gender-inclusive student housing and the use of preferred names on identification cards and in class.
“My queerness and transness is the core of who I am and why I do what I do,” Walker said.
That work is grounded in visibility. Walker wants to be the representation he lacked and to create spaces where others can show up authentically. He has volunteered with PRISM and TransEd and worked with Rebel Recovery and Inspire/Transpire.
Walker holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from FAU and is pursuing his master’s degree. His accomplishments also include marrying his best friend, a transgender woman, and building a life he once could not imagine reaching.
“As a trans youth, I didn't think I would live to see 18, to graduate high school, to live as an adult, to find love and friends and community,” he said. “I'm living, breathing proof that it gets so much better.”
His message to LGBTQ youth is equally clear: “You belong here just as much as anyone else; don't ever let anyone convince you otherwise.”
Walker’s favorite words from John Lewis, “Make good trouble,” describe a life devoted to turning difficult experiences into support, advocacy and tangible change for others.
