Friends of the Children celebrates one year of transforming lives on Flathead Reservation

POLSON — Friends of the Children is celebrating one year of working on the Flathead Reservation. "We're getting to serve children in the community that need it the most," Friends of the Children program director Nicole Callahan told MTN. At the organization's Polson clubhouse, kids from Dayton to Dixon do all sorts of activities.

"Some of the kids come in and they refer to it as a home sweet home," Callahan said.

But the most important part is spending quality time with their mentors. "I've had a few people in my life that I've looked up and still look up to. A lot of the boys that I have, they have strictly female households, and so having a male role model in their lives is very important," mentor Bubba Bush said.

Mentors stick by the children through thick and thin, providing emotional support for years of their lives. "Research shows that children do best when they have one consistent adult relationship in their life," Callahan explained. "They're attending classroom time, they're going to lunch and recess, supporting with classroom behavior, social emotional development, peer interactions, and then they're also out in the community or here," she continued.

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