Aimee Stephens, right, and her wife Donna

Aimee Stephens, the Michigan transgender woman whose lawsuit against her former employer for firing her when she came out as transgender has already made it to the U.S. Supreme Court and could set precedent, has gone into hospice, according to friends of the family.

Stephens filed suit after she was fired from her job at R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes in 2013, two weeks after came out as transgender to her boss. Both the EEOC and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in her favor, saying that the funeral home had violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The funeral home appealed, and the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in the case last October. A decision from the court over whether Title VII includes protections for LGBTQ people is expected at any time.

Friends of the family said that Stephens has suffered with diabetes for years now and had been undergoing regular dialysis treatments. In recent weeks, however, her condition has worsened to the point where she can no longer receive dialysis. She is now in hospice care at home with her wife, Donna, and their daughter.

Friends of the family have established a GoFundMe page to raise money to help pay household expenses, end-of-life care expenses and, when the time comes, funeral expenses for Stephens. The fundraising efforts currently is about $1,500 shy of its $5,000 goal. You can contribute here.

— Tammye Nash