Corn hole tournament to benefit Families First
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
POLSON — Glacier Brewing in Polson will be holding a Corn Hole for a Cause tournament on Sept. 18 for the benefit of Families First.
Funded by several local businesses, with Blackfoot Communications acting as the title sponsor, organizers hope to see anywhere from 20 to 30 people participate in the double elimination tournament. Starting at 1 p.m., the tournament will go until a winner is reached. Prizes include a $250 cash prize, a stocked mini fridge, and a large gift basket.
Families First is an organization based out of Missoula and approximately one third of their programs take place in Lake County. This will be their first fundraiser in the area, and proceeds will go towards bringing in a fulltime staff member to be based in Lake County.
“We’re a pretty small team, so we’re trying to get the resources to grow as quickly as our needs are growing,” Hannah Zuraff, Executive Director of Families First explained. With seven staff members in the organization, they offer three primary tiers of programming.
The first tier is child enrichment, which is targeted toward children ages zero to nine with a focus on learning through play. This includes things such as a kindergarten readiness camp in Missoula, as well as rentable exhibits people and organizations can borrow to have a fun and interactive play exhibit for kids to engage with in businesses and waiting rooms.
The second, and most dominating tier of programming they offer in Lake County, is family education work. Grounded in empowering parents to be better parents, Zuraff explained the goal is to give them the tools they need to succeed. This includes programs such as Mending Broken Hearts, which focuses on healing unresolved and intergenerational trauma and grief. A Circle Security class is also offered to help increase parent-child attachment, as well as several childcare provider workshops.
“The hope is if we can give adults the skills they need to help raise healthy children, we can help break these intergenerational cycles,” Zuraff stated.
Finally, the third tier is engrained with the statewide Montana Happiness Project, which works with people and organizations to address the problem of suicide through education, consultation, and supervision. Within that project, Families First represents the Happy Families tier, which is meant to promote wellbeing and happiness in kids in middle and high school, and is also interwoven through their parenting programs.
As Families First has seen increasing demand through recent months, they’re hopeful fundraising efforts will help them rise to meet local needs.
Participation in the tournament costs $50 per team, and registration is open up to the day of the tournament though prior registration is preferred. Those interested participating can sign up online at https://e.givesmart.com/events/rTq/
Those interested in learning more about Families First or participating in future volunteering opportunities can email them at info@familiesfirstmt.org. The organization also welcomes all monthly donors. “Whether its $5 per month or $100, that’s another big way to contribute to something bigger that can help the community and really sustain our endeavors, like having a new position in the Flathead, or growing new programs throughout Western Montana,” Zuraff said.
To become a donor or volunteer, or to learn more about Families First, visit familiesfirstmt.org.
