Expand<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cIt felt really good,\u201d said Jonah, who received UCLA\u2019s Meritorious LGBTQ+ Service Award at a Sunday, April 12,symposium at UCLA after raising about $150,000 for the center. He also received a Certificate of Congressional Recognition from Rep. Ted Lieu.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not expect to get an award,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
But the recognition is only part of the story.<\/p>\n
Jonah\u2019s relationship with UCLA started last year when he contacted C-LARAH, hoping for an internship. At the time, he had received a sobering reply from its director, Dr. Matthew Mimiaga:<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen (Jonah) contacted me, I explained that funding for our research and training programs had been abruptly cut by the new presidential administration,\u201d said Mimiaga, who is also a professor in the Department of Epidemiology at UCLA\u2019s Fielding School of Public Health.<\/p>\n
It was a cut that jeopardized years of groundbreaking research on LGBTQ+ health, HIV prevention and community advocacy, Mimiaga said.<\/p>\n
For Jonah, it was that \u201cno\u201d that became the catalyst for action.<\/p>\n
\u201cJonah got so mad about it,\u201d said his dad, James Segil. \u201cNot because they said no, but because it was like, \u2018OK, I hear all about these cuts and everything that has happened to the federal government, and now this is in my backyard, at this huge organization. Like, how is this possible?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Putting his internship ambitions aside, Jonah sprang into action \u2014 calling on a network of family and friends to mobilize an on-the-ground fundraising effort that raised more than $100,000 for the center in just a few months.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey had told me, \u2018We wish that there were ways for you to get involved, but we\u2019re basically starving to keep the lights on,\u2019\u201d Jonah said. \u201cThat led me to tell my dad about it and then form the fundraising committee.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jonah\u2019s fundraising efforts marked the first time the center had relied on private donations. Before he came along, C-LARAH had received all of its funding from government grants.<\/p>\n
UCLA\u2019s C-LARAH is a public health research center focused on improving health outcomes for LGBTQ+ communities. Its work includes HIV prevention and treatment, as well as broader research on health disparities, mental health and access to care for LGBTQ+ individuals.<\/p>\n
The center also conducts local community outreach, education and support programs, connecting underserved populations with critical services.<\/p>\n
When I asked Jonah why he felt compelled to help the center, Jonah said its mission simply aligned with his values.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have been doing LGBT+ student advocacy around the South Bay for years, and this was something I felt really passionate about,\u201d he said. \u201cIt alarmed me that this resource for the LGBTQ community was disappearing, so I wanted to help them.\u201d<\/p>\n
To raise the money, Jonah worked with Mimiaga to put together pitch decks. Working primarily on Zoom, he initially reached out to his family\u2019s personal network \u2014 friends, neighbors, colleagues \u2014 and then expanded outward.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome people didn\u2019t want to get involved, but a lot of people did,\u201d Jonah said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd some people gave us connections,\u201d he added, \u201cso we reached out to those people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not surprisingly, Jonah has subsequently become an instrumental member of the C-LARAH team. He is now an official research intern and has already co-authored his first academic paper (a feat that Mimiaga calls \u201cunheard of for his age group\u201d).<\/p>\n
He is also in the midst of developing an independent research project on HIV and adolescent LGBTQ+ health disparities.<\/p>\n
And that\u2019s on top of high school, where he participates in Model U.N. and maintains an A average with an AP course load.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really remarkable; I just think so highly of him,\u201d said Mimiaga, who is working with Jonah on his current research project. \u201cHe\u2019s been incredible to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n
For those who know Jonah, it\u2019s no surprise that this soft-spoken and approachable teen would mount such a monumental campaign.<\/p>\n
An openly gay teen who came out in middle school, Jonah is active in LGBTQ+ advocacy and has spoken on PFLAG panels. He also started a Queer Advocacy Club at Mira Costa and interned for state Sen. Ben Allen, where he contributed research on LGBTQ+ policy issues.<\/p>\n
He serves on the Beach Cities Health District Youth Advisory Council, where he advocates for issues affecting local youth, including equitable care, mental health and substance abuse prevention.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is my identity,\u201d he said, adding that the Manhattan Beach community has been, for the most part, accepting of him and others in the LGBTQ community. \u201cIt took years of just living out my identity and realizing that, \u2018Hey, this is something I don\u2019t want to hide anymore. I don\u2019t care who knows about it.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cI want other LGBTQ teens around the South Bay,\u201d he added, \u201cto know that their experiences are valid and, like, you\u2019re not alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Philanthropy runs in the family. Jonah\u2019s parents, James and Donn\u00e9 Segil, said they raised Jonah and his three brothers \u201con the Jewish values of tzedakah (charity) and tikkun olam (repairing the world).\u201d<\/p>\n
As a kid, Jonah spent many hours preparing and distributing basic-needs kits with The Giving Spirit, a nonprofit that provides aid to unhoused women, children and families across the Los Angeles area.<\/p>\n
Suffice it to say, it\u2019s easy to see why UCLA wants to keep him. And while he hasn\u2019t nailed down his college plans, he said he may head to the East Coast for school.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe would love to have him at UCLA, for sure,\u201d Mimiaga said. \u201cHe\u2019s definitely a leader in his age group. In terms of the next generation, he\u2019s certainly going to be leading his peers.\u201d<\/p>\n
For more information about UCLA\u2019s Center for LGBTQ Advocacy, Research and Health, go to lgbtq.ph.ucla.edu.<\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"People love to complain about the TikTok-toting, AI-assisted downfall of today\u2019s generation of teens \u2014 but then you…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":199396,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[75,84,83,9,24,63,4861,4863,4862,27],"class_list":{"0":"post-199395","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-manhattan","8":"tag-manhattan","9":"tag-manhattan-headlines","10":"tag-manhattan-news","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-city","13":"tag-nyc","14":"tag-tbr-kindness","15":"tag-tbr-news","16":"tag-the-beach-reporter","17":"tag-top-stories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/199395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=199395"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/199395\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/199396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=199395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=199395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=199395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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