BIGFORK — A teen center in Bigfork dedicated to providing the adolescence of the community a safe and alternate option to reckless behaviors.
The Grounded Teen Center had planned to open last March to provide teens with a safe place to be.
“Just out of safety and to wait and see what happens we held off until October to be able to open the doors here and invite kids in,” Grounded Teen Center president Brian Truckey said.
Truckey says having a teen center that provides the kids in the community with an option for fun and safety, is what the center is there for.
“When they walk through that door the one thing, we want to know is that they are loved and cared for by adults in this community,” Truckey told MTN News.
The Grounded Teen Center has only been open along Highway 83 for four months and the volunteers have already seen a large number of teens.
“It's been phenomenal, so we've got an average of 20 plus kids here at night,” Truckey said.
He added that being able to guide teens through the difficulties of their life is why he started the Grounded Teen Center.
“You get to walk into their life and [be] invited into their life. And a lot of times that's not as pretty as you think,” Truckey said.
“And so there's a lot of hurting kids that seek refuge here and we get to walk through that with them which is a privilege and an honor,” Truckey continued.
But the space isn’t just for guiding kids. The Center has a pool table, ping-pong table, a computer lab, free food for all the kids, as well as a washer and dryer and a shower for the kids who may be couch surfing.
Truckey says in the future the center wants to be able to not rely on donations to be able to remain open.
“The hope is that we'll have an escape room coming soon which will be funding the operational budget here and make it self-sustainable,” Truckey concluded.
The Grounded Teen Center is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 3 p.m. until 9 p.m. and Truckey’s hope is to get enough volunteers to be open every day.
Truckey is asking for volunteers to be able to allow the center to be open. Click here for more information from the Grounded Teen Center.
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