Who We Are
Camp Silver is dedicated to providing a safe, affirming, and empowering space for trans and gender expansive youth to come together, build connections, and thrive. Our camp was born out of a deep-seated need within the community, driven by the unfortunate reality that trans and gender expansive individuals often face heightened discrimination and challenges in their daily lives. Our mission is to create a haven where these remarkable young individuals can flourish, express themselves freely, and find a strong support network that uplifts and understands them.
Mission
Our mission is to empower trans and gender expansive youth through engaging experiences.
Vision
Our vision is for trans and gender expansive youth in Florida to be authentically thriving, empowered within a vibrant and compassionate community, where creativity and confidence flourish.
Our Story
The inspiration for Camp Silver can be traced back to a remarkable journey of compassion and advocacy. Our founder, pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Janet Silverstein, spent the majority of her career advocating for the transformative power of a camp for children with diabetes, witnessing firsthand how a nurturing environment and a sense of community could positively impact young lives. Drawing from this experience and witnessing the increased marginalization of trans and gender expansive youth, she was moved to take action and create a similar haven with Camp Silver.
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Our Executive Board
Listed Below in Alphabetical Order
Simone Chriss J.D. (she/her/hers)
Simone Chriss is a civil rights lawyer in Florida and the Director of the Transgender Rights Initiative at Southern Legal Counsel, a public interest non-profit law firm in Gainesville, Florida. Chriss graduated from the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where she received her J.D. with honors. Chriss developed SLC’s Transgender Rights Initiative in 2017 to fill a gap in access to justice by systemically providing assistance to the transgender community in areas such as access to name and gender marker changes, obtaining accurate IDs, representation in educational proceedings, protection from discriminatory policies, and more. She conducts LGBTQ+ cultural competency trainings and transgender rights trainings statewide and nationally, and presents transgender name and gender marker change workshops throughout Florida.
Chriss utilizes federal impact litigation to challenge discriminatory laws and policies that infringe upon the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals, and is currently leading multiple federal lawsuits against the state of Florida, including Dekker v. Weida, Case No. 4:22-cv-00325 (N.D. Fla. 2022), successfully challenging the state’s discriminatory ban stripping access to gender-affirming healthcare from all Florida Medicaid beneficiaries; Jane Doe v. Surgeon General Ladapo, Case No. 4:23-cv-00114 (N.D. Fla. 2023), challenging the criminalization of the provision of gender-affirming care to transgender minors and the restrictions to accessing care for adults; Wood v. Fla. Department of Education, Case No. 4:23-cv-00526 (N.D. Fla. 2023), challenging the law prohibiting transgender teachers from using their pronouns; and more.
The National LGBTQ+ Bar selected Chriss as one of the “40 Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40” in 2022. She also received the “Outstanding Recent Alumni Award” from the University of Florida Levin College of Law. In 2023, Chriss received the “Exceptional Community Impact Award” from the Pride Community Center of North Central Florida, the “Fearless Children’s Lawyer Award” from the American Bar Association, and the “Advocate of the Year Award” from Spektrum Health. Chriss also received the “Voice for Equality Award” from Equality Florida in 2021.
Chriss also works with the UF Health Youth Gender Program through a Medical Legal Partnership ("MLP"), through which she screens transgender youth and families for health harming legal needs. She then provides the families free legal assistance on issues such as navigating discriminatory health insurance issues, ensuring access to bathrooms and consistent use of affirmed names and pronouns at school, and obtaining legal name/gender marker changes and amending government-issued identification documents, among others.
Maria Vélez-Climent (she/her/hers)
Dr. Jen Evans (she/her/hers)
Dr. Jen Evans is a licensed clinical psychologist who lives and works in Gainesville. Jen graduated with a PsyD from the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University 's San Francisco campus in 2011. Jen currently works in private practice as well as at the UF Pediatric Endocrinology Youth Gender Program. Since that time, Dr. Evans has facilitated over 30 continuing education trainings on the topic of diverse genders and sexualities. As a queer-identified person, Jen is passionate about giving back to the community. Most recently, Jen has been actively involved in the Florida Psychological Association’s Diversity and Cultural Competence Committee, and currently serves on the boards of the Transgender Health Education Network and also Camp Silver. Jen is also a member of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), the organization that sets forth the standards of care for medical and mental health professionals providing services to transgender populations.
Regina Livingston (she/her/hers)
Regina Livingston, the founder and CEO of Unspoken Treasure Society, has always had a vision to help bring unity in the world, but at a young age, did not quite know how to make that happen. She believes all of her life's experiences have helped form her to the woman she is today. As a result, the Unspoken Treasure Society organization was formed.
Unspoken Treasure Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping find solutions to the needs of the trans community of color. Our Vision is to provide resources so that those affected will have the same opportunities: whether it be job placement, affordable and fair housing, safe sex education, HIV testing and counseling, suicide prevention as well as advocating for victims of domestice abuse.
Since its conception in 2018, Unspoken Treasure Society now has three chapters, which includes Gainesville, Jacksonville, and Atlanta, Georgia.
As Regina recollects, "This has been a journey that has not always been easy, but one that I've enjoyed every minute of it. I've made a goal to help unify our trans community and i see myself doing just that.
Dr. Janet Silverstein (she/her/hers)
Dr. Janet Silverstein is a retired Pediatric Endocrinologist, spending the majority of her career with UF Health. Over the course of her career she has held many titles including director, chief, program director, professor, medical director, associate chief, and associate professor, to name a few. She is the faculty founder of the UF Pediatric Endocrinology Youth Gender Program.
She was chair of many national committees including the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Section of Endocrinology, Children’s workgroup of the National Diabetes Education Program, the Diabetes in Youth committee, and President of the Pediatric Endocrine Society (PES). She was also selected to serve on the AAP Committee on Nutrition, was an author on the School Guide (Helping the Child with Diabetes Succeed in School), was a member of the Clinical Practice committee of the American Diabetes Association, was on the Decision skills committee for maintenance of certification for the American Board of Pediatrics and writing committee for the Pediatric Endocrinology sub board of the ABP, and was on the Wellness committee for the Alachua County school district.
Todd Silverstein (he/him/his)
Todd Silverstein has extensive experience working in and with early-stage ventures. As the founder and serving Board member of The Greater Sum Foundation, Todd has worked collaboratively for years to accelerate the impact and improve efficiencies of early stage non-profits. Additionally, Todd has worked as Director of Operations in numerous early and growth stage for-profit and non-profit companies, and brings a wealth of operational knowledge, skills, and abilities to help senior leadership advance Camp Silver's mission.
Anna Taylor (she/her/hers)
Anna Taylor is the Executive Director of The Greater Sum Foundation, a private operating foundation whose mission is to support innovation in the nonprofit sector. In this role, Anna coordinates the selection of a cohort of nonprofit leaders who receive grant funding, subject matter expertise, and professional development opportunities. She also nurtures The Greater Sum's volunteer network, engages with higher education institutions to support a pipeline of young entrepreneurs into the sector, and speaks on the topic of planning for innovation. Anna is a graduate of the University of Florida and The George Washington University.
Our Advisory Board
Dr. Kristin Dayton (she/her/hers)
Dr. Kristin Dayton is a Pediatric Endocrinologist who specializes in gender affirming care for youth.