Community Rallies After GOP Cuts Funding For Pizza Parties They Think Are Turning Kids Trans

After the Ellensburg City Council in Washington voted to cut funding for weekly pizza parties for a school LGBTQ+ program over fears it was encouraging kids to become gay and trans—calling it “a target on minors"—the community quickly stepped up to donate more than enough funds.

Launched in 2023, the program was highlighted in the Ellensburg Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Commission’s year-end report and proposed 2025 budget, which advocated for its continuation. The Pizza Klatch attracted an average of 27 students weekly throughout 2024, offering a safe and supportive classroom environment for LGBTQ+ students and their allies, according to supporters.

But city council member Joshua Thompson nonetheless made the statement during a meeting while discussing funding for the DEI Commission. The debate centered on whether to continue supporting the weekly Pizza Klatch at the local high school, which costs $1,400 annually for pizza.

Thompson claimed the pizza party is encouraging high schoolers to adopt a gay lifestyle or explore transgender identities, describing it as "a target on minors." He was the sole vote in favor of his proposed ban on funding for the pizza program.

He added that high schoolers are “highly impressionable” and stressed that the city should not be spending taxpayer dollars “on what could and has separated kids from their parents.”

A second amendment, pitched as a compromise by councilmember Delano Palmer, sought to maintain funding but required parental consent for students attending the weekly lunchtime gathering; that proposal also failed.

Ultimately, the council voted 4-3 to approve the DEI Commission’s $10,000 annual budget request and to allow the pizza program to continue but without direct council funding.

As a result, the $1,400 needed for the program had to come from private donations.

The meeting spurred an Ellensburg resident, Steve Verhey, to launch an online fundraiser, which successfully raised over $2,000 to keep the Pizza Klatch program alive.

Verhey remains optimistic, however, that the program won’t always have to rely on public donations for funding though he criticized the council's action in remarks to KNDO News:

"I'm a little bit annoyed at having to do the city council’s job for them. The city council’s job is to keep everyone who lives in Ellensburg safe and to give them the conditions they need to thrive.”

And while there is a happy ending here, the council has faced significant criticism for defunding the program in the first place.

Yakima Pride said the vote "to restrict funding for such programs raises serious concerns about the city's commitment to inclusivity and the well-being of its LGBTQ+ youth," adding that in defunding the program, "the City Council is sending a harmful message that the needs and experiences of LGBTQ+ youth are not valued."

Others have also condemned the move.

Don't come between kids, LGBTQ or otherwise, and their pizza.