Going to college after high school is the general norm for most kids. Unfortunately for one New Jersey native, James Marchese, the road to college has become less of a reality because of his sexuality.

James has dreams of attending Fairfield University in Connecticut this fall. All was going to plan until his father found out he was gay and pulled all of his college funding. Now James has had to resort to creating a GoFundMe page in order to raise enough funds for tuition outside of the scholarships he’s earned in order to attend his freshman year.

The situation began when James’ stepmother found gay related material on his brother’s phone, which eventually caused both to come out to her and his father. That’s when the financial support was pulled. To make matters worse, his biological mother is unable to help him due to her own money situation and he has no one else available to be a co-signer for any loans that could ease the pain.

James’ worth in this matter goes beyond a dollar amount. He’s excelled in school to the point where half of the money for his freshman year is already covered by scholarships (around $30,000). Not only that, but he has also worked tirelessly in his high school theatre program and plans to expand the LGBTQ presence at Fairfield University this fall.

When we chatted, James went into detail about the specifics regarding what his father did and where he stands currently on the GoFundMe page itself, which has already raised $2,500 in ten days of being active.

James told me he still would like to have a relationship with his father regardless of his views, which given his current circumstances with him is quite the noble thing to say (he would like his father to remain nameless along with his stepmother).

It is a story that we have seen before and it never gets easier. The fact that parents are putting their children’s lives on hold all because of their sexualities is something that is beyond grotesque to me and many others who are in our community or supports us.

I’ve had the chance to talk to James over the past week and his spirit and drive are still very alive amid all the chaos he’s had to unfortunately experience in this matter.

My hope is that everyone reading this will find it in their heart, especially with it being Pride month, to help him out so he can begin his journey not only as a student but a true citizen of this world.

You can read all about James’ mission on his GoFundMe page here.