The Pritzker Military Foundation, founded by Lieutenant Colonel Jennifer N. Pritzker (Retired), is providing a $20,000 donation to SPARTA Pride, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that’s home to a community of thousands of transgender service members, veterans, families, and their allies. The funding will enable SPARTA Pride to hire and sustain staff dedicated to supporting programs, managing membership, and advancing advocacy efforts for the transgender military and veteran community.
“The Pritzker Military Foundation and I are honored to support those who have served our country,” said LTC Jennifer Pritzker USA (RET). “Transgender service members and veterans remain an underserved population, and organizations like SPARTA Pride play a vital role in ensuring they are seen, heard, and supported with the resources they need to succeed.”
Formed in 2013, SPARTA Pride serves more than 2,500 members and provides peer support, mentoring, emergency grants, education, and lawful advocacy for the entire transgender military and veteran community. It focuses on developing community and building resiliency for transgender service members who were unfairly separated from military service because of their gender identity, as well as military members who are not serving openly. SPARTA advocates for the rights of future service members to serve openly and equally, as well as for the restoration of earned benefits to transgender service members who were forced out due to unfair policies.
The organization has been a leading advocate for the right of transgender Americans to serve openly and equally in the U.S. military, playing a key role in policy changes from 2015 to 2016 and continuing its activism today in response to the 2025 transgender service ban. Since November 2024, SPARTA Pride has worked with a network of coalition partners to oppose discriminatory policies and support impacted service members through legal action, resources, career transition assistance, and programs.
“Thousands of transgender service members are currently being purged from the military based on discrimination alone, losing their income, health care, housing, childcare, ability to support their families, and in many cases, their sense of purpose and community,” said MAJ Kara Corcoran, Executive Director of SPARTA Pride. “Now more than ever, our community needs sustainable support, resources, and allyship. SPARTA Pride is tremendously grateful to the Pritzker Military Foundation for recognizing this need and generously helping our organization ensure we leave no one behind.”
The Pritzker Military Foundation is a private foundation that accepts applications by invitation only. There is no open application period.
About the Pritzker Military Foundation
The Pritzker Military Foundation seeks to support the work of both the Pritzker Military Museum & Library—and similar nonprofit organizations—to preserve American military history, restore historic military artifacts and make them accessible to the public, and provide services and essential resources to active-duty military, veterans and families of service members in all branches of the United States Armed Forces. To learn more, visit www.pritzkermilitaryfoundation.org.
