Parents of transgender teenager Jazz Jennings
Greg and Jeanette Jennings are an exciting example of allies in action. The parents of TLC’s transgender reality star Jazz Jennings (I Am Jazz), were your typical South Florida family until they had their fourth child, a boy. Their oldest daughter, Arial, and twin sons Sander and Griffen, welcolmed the new arrival, and all was idyllic until their youngest turned four and expressed that he was a girl trapped in a boy’s body.
The incredible Jennings not only took the revelation in stride, they embraced the news with love and advocacy, forming the TransKids Purple Rainbow Foundation (TKPRF) to educate schools, peers, places of worship, the medical community, government bodies, and society in general, in an effort to seek fair and equal treatment for all transyouth.
TKPRF reaches out to the homeless youth as well as those that have nowhere else to turn. Funds for healthcare and scholarships can be made available to transyouth in need.
After Jazz expressed her concern about experiencing male puberty, Greg and Jeannette consulted physicians about beginning hormone therapy with estrogen. The process is expensive, but as testament to their support of their child, Greg told ABC News, “Jeanette and I are in 100 percent agreement as to how we should raise Jazz. We don’t encourage, we support. And we just keep listening to what she tells us.”
In an effort to protect their personal privacy, Greg and Jeanette use the last name Jennings for public purposes. However, there is nothing secret about their advocacy in proclaiming their support of the transgender community.
