Friends of the Children-Detroit is part of a national non-profit network, serving 25 locations in the U.S. Friends of the Children’s trauma-informed approach impacts generational change, empowering youth facing the greatest challenges through relationships with professional mentors called Friends. Through long-term, professional mentoring, the program has been shown to increase the health and wellbeing of youth and their caregivers who live with the intersecting pressures of poverty, complex trauma, and race.  

Friends Detroit serves families in Detroit and Wayne County who are profoundly disconnected from the community, focusing on children who have experienced multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) by the time they are in kindergarten. We work within neighborhoods in Detroit where families of color are in the majority and referrals to the child welfare system are highest.