FRIENDS PROGRAM INC
Strengthening communities by building connections and solutions
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The Friends Program serves the immediate needs of over 4,000 NH at-risk children, homeless families, and low-income seniors annually. We work to address the root causes of social problems by helping to prevent future homelessness, academic failure, chronic illness and depression, and the effects of abuse by providing the tools and resources necessary to those in need.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Friends Emergency Housing Program
The Friends Emergency Housing Program provides shelter and case management to homeless families. Our capacity allows us to serve eight families at any given time.
The Friends Emergency Housing Program is the only family shelter in Merrimack County and regularly accepts homeless families from across the state.
Friends Foster Grandparents Program
"Foster Grandparents" are low-income seniors who earn a small stipend to tutor and mentor struggling children and youth. They provide daily encouragement, academic help and life skills in classrooms, childcare centers and youth organizations
Friends Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP)
Our RSVP volunteers work with local non-profit groups, healthcare facilities, local and state agencies to increase their capacity to address important community needs. The program matches volunteers with opportunities that fit their interests, skills and availability.
Friends Youth Mentoring Program
The Youth Mentoring Program was founded in 1975 to address juvenile delinquency. Since then it has evolved, using best practice knowledge and research, to address a number of issues, including juvenile delinquency, school performance, school dropout rates, substance abuse prevention and in general, positive youth development.
Where we work
External reviews
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
These are for the fiscal year (Oct 1 - Sept 30)
Total number of volunteer hours contributed to the organization
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
this if for fiscal year (Oct 1 - Sept 30)
Number of clients served
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This is for the fiscal year (Oct 1 - Sept 30).
Hours of mentoring
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This is for fiscal year (Oct 1 - September 30.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Our goal is to increase the numbers of and involvement by the volunteers in our four programs - Youth Mentoring, Emergency Housing, Foster Grandparent, and Retired and Senior Volunteer Program - in order to continue to provided needed assistance and resources to those we serve. For our Emergency Housing Program, we want to provide the necessary supports to the families experiencing homelessness, break the cycle of housing insecurity, and work with the families to get them back on their feet in stable, safe housing. The Foster Grandparent Program places low-income senior volunteers in childcare centers and public school classrooms to provide critical support to improve student learning. This support results in better academic achievement and increased social connections for the students and the senior volunteers see improved economic and health outcomes while building knowledge and skills in child development. Friends Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) mobilizes volunteers 55 and over who want to provide community service through our Caregivers Program, Bone Builders classes and volunteering at non-profit and public organizations to help them serve their clients and meet their missions. As the population of NH continues to age and the research shows how community and social connections increase mental and physical health, this program will continue to grow in importance. The Friends Youth Mentoring Program matches vulnerable youth in Merrimack County with a dedicated and caring volunteer. This Program provides a highly responsible and meaningful opportunity for a caring mentor to change the life of a disconnected or underserved child in need.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The agency deploys approximately 800 screened and trained volunteers who mentor youth, teach reading and math to schoolchildren, knit hats and scarfs for veterans, provide the elderly with rides to medical appointments, serve food at soup kitchens, lead exercise classes, and shelter homeless families, among many other activities. The way to help solve some of societies problems is to get society involved, in their community, helping their neighbors in need. We continue to look for ways to increase the number of volunteers involved in our Programs by creating relationships with existing community organizations, businesses and institutions, as well as by finding ways for those interested in volunteering to do so in a way that works for them and is meaningful.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We have approximately 800 screened and trained volunteers that contribute over 250,000 hours to our four Programs. We are actively recruiting new volunteers into the Programs but the needs of homeless families, at-risk youth and low-income serniors continue to grow as well. The staff and Board of Trustees of the Friends Program are committed to the mission of the organization and those we serve.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In FY2023, the Friends Program made a difference in the lives of homeless families, low-income seniors, and at-risk youth by training and mobilizing volunteers to give back to those in need in their community. The Results: nearly 900 children were supported by low-income senior volunteers through our Foster Grandparent Program, over 100 at-risk youth were able to take part in our Youth Mentoring Program, nearly 500 senior volunteers had the opportunity to positively impact more than 40,000 people through our Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), including providing over 2000 rides for the homebound elderly and disabled through our Caregivers Program, and 2376 bone builders classes. More than 100 people, a majority of them children, were provided safe housing and support services in our Emergency Housing Family Shelter. We will continue our efforts to recruit and train volunteers to support those we serve in order to make life better for both parties.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, It is difficult to get honest feedback from the people we serve
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
FRIENDS PROGRAM INC
Board of directorsas of 01/29/2024
Kathleen Ames
Kathleen Ames
Angela Strozewski
Polly Saltmarsh
Jay Belyea
Connor Spern
Chris Senko
Allen Desbiens
Mark Dartnell
Susan Geiger
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
No data
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 08/28/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.