Friends of the Children

Happy Native Nonprofit Day! Join Friends of the Children and Native Ways Federation as we celebrate and honor Native-led organizations and support them as they address and advocate for solutions to the diverse issues faced by communities in Indian Country. Friends of the Children is proud to have opened our first Indigenous-led chapter Friends of the Children - He Sapa in partnership with the Oglala Sioux Tribe in 2022 and shortly after opened a second location on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. In addition, Friends of the Children Montana extended beyond Missoula in 2023 to create a new site on the Flathead Reservation within the sovereign territory of the Confederated Salish-Kootenai Tribes. Our long-term model is grounded together with the Indigenous culture to help children and families to build a path to stability and community and embrace being inherently who they are. We continue to nurture our work with Sovereign Tribal Nations where we have chapters including in Klamath Basin, Eastern Montana, Western Montana, Fargo-Moorhead, Twin Cities, and Eastern Idaho and we look forward to working together to build a brighter future for the Indigenous youth who inspire us every day. #NativeNonprofitDay

More than 30 percent of youth and families in our program are – or have been – involved in foster care. Our Friends work hard to make sure that youth in foster care – or youth at-risk of care - and their caregivers have their needs met. Friends average five contacts each month with caregivers and facilitate connection to concrete resources in times of need. 92% of caregivers in our program report that Friends connected them to resources that stabilized their families. #PutChildrenFirst #FosterOurFuture

As Friends of the Children continues to grow and expand, we are excited to introduce our model to new communities across the country! Recently, Friends - National's Chief Expansion Officer Angela Groves visited La Grande, Oregon for an event where local stakeholders gathered to learn more about the program and the work that has been done over the last year to bring Friends of the Children to Union County. To read more about the event and the advocates working to bring the model to children and families facing the greatest obstacles in Eastern Oregon, please visit: https://bit.ly/4dBXvOq

Introducing the newest member of the Friends of the Children – National Team! We are thrilled to welcome DeMario Easley to our team as a Marketing and Web Specialist. DeMario brings a wealth of experience in marketing and education, coupled with his involvement at the Boys and Girls Club. We asked DeMario about joining Friends of the Children and he said: "I feel like my background perfectly aligns with the mission of Friends of the Children. I am confident that my experience and skill set will truly make a difference in the lives of the children we serve. I'm excited to work with such an inspiring group of people who are passionate about their work." Welcome aboard, DeMario!

Mental Health America has awarded Friends of the Children - National the Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health with a gold rating! We know that to serve families and children, it is crucial that we first model strong mental health support for our own staff. While Friends - National continues our work to better support staff, we are delighted and proud that Mental Health America has recognized our efforts. Read more about the Beal Seal for Workplace Mental Health and Friends of the Children's certification here: https://bit.ly/3QIIsIQ

Happy Mother's Day! Today, Friends of the Children celebrates all the caring, loving, and selfless mothers, grandmothers, aunts, foster moms, and other caregivers who support children's dreams. Your efforts in raising the next generation do not go unnoticed and we are so grateful for all that you do. We wish you an amazing Mother's Day!

At Friends of the Children, we are committed to improving the mental health of youth and families facing barriers to care. Evidence shows that our model works. The majority of youth in the program - including 70% of teens - have accessed counseling services when needed and 98% of youth made progress on social and emotional development. We are proud that our Friends – paid, professional mentors - are able to improve access, increase engagement, and expand capacity for services that support the mental, emotional, and behavioral health of youth in our program. #PutChildrenFirst #MentalHealthMatters

Friends of the Children's National Program Director Ricardo Perry recently visited the Friends of the Children - Twin Cities chapter! For a few days, Ricardo met with the Friends - Twin Cities for coaching and training as they begin serving youth in the Minneapolis-St. Paul community. During the visit, they even got to meet with Minnesota's Attorney General Keith Ellison to share about Friends of the Children's important work. Thank you to Ricardo and to our entire Friends - National program team for the work you do to keep our long-term mentoring model performing at the highest levels across the country! We are excited to see this support in action as Friends - Twin Cities begins to walk alongside youth for 12+ years, no matter what.

Friends of the Children - Chicago is taking action to address the literacy crisis head-on! According to the 2023 Chicago Public Schools report, only 12.2% of low-income third graders read at grade level. Friends - Chicago Executive Director, Taal Hasak-Lowy penned an Op-Ed in the Chicago Sun-Times that explores the impact that literacy has on a child’s life and what we can do to address the illiteracy crisis. It is only through individualized, in-depth, and long-term support that we will empower children facing the greatest obstacles to thrive. Literacy isn't just about reading—it's a pathway to success, safety, and opportunity. To read the full piece, please visit: https://bit.ly/3QoSZZP

Friends of the Children is proud to join the nationwide campaigns for both National Foster Care Month and National Mental Health Awareness Month this May! We are proud to celebrate and build awareness around our 30-year history of empowering children and families to be healthy and flourish. Join us this month as we share inspiring stories about the impact Friends have as they walk alongside children and families who face the greatest obstacles. Read more here: https://bit.ly/44rKoLv #PutChildrenFirst #FosterOurFuture #MentalHealthMatters