Friends of the Children Portland

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We work toward the day where every child who needs a friend has one.

Impacting generational change by empowering youth who are facing the greatest obstacles through relationships with professional mentors.

POWER OF ONE

One Child. One Friend. 12+ Years, No Matter What.

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Impacting generational change by empowering youth who are facing the greatest obstacles through relationships with professional mentors.

Friends with Thorns

Coffee is Better with Friends

Aiden and Jordan Wings

OUR METHOD

We select children who face multiple systemic obstacles. We amplify their voices as they write their own stories of hope and resilience.

OUR MODEL

We commit to each child for the long-term. 12+ years, no matter what. Each child is paired with a paid professional mentor called a Friend.

Our Outcomes

92%

of youth go on to enroll in post-secondary education, serve our country or enter the workforce.

83%

of youth earn a high school diploma or a GED.

93%

of youth remain free from juvenile justice system involvement.

98%

of youth wait to parent until after their teen years.

Partners

M J Murdock Charitable Trust transparent text

FriendsPDX Land Acknowledgement

Multnomah County is located on the traditional lands of the Multnomah, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Cowlitz bands of Chinook, Tualatin Kalapuya, Molalla, Willamette Tumwater, and many other Indigenous nations of the Columbia River. This is stolen land, and it is our duty to continue to honor and center the first peoples of this region.