GREAT FALLS — On Saturday in Great Falls, people stopped by Holiday Village Mall to pick up a box of Krispy Kreme donuts and drop off a donation for Toby’s House Crisis Nursery.
Toby’s House Crisis Nursery is an up-and-coming non-profit within Great Falls, dedicated to the prevention of abuse and neglect among children.
The facility will serve as a 24-hour/7-day-a week home for children whose parents or caregivers are in crisis. Crisis can range from someone who has an abusive spouse and requires child care, to a mother struggling with postpartum who needs assistance to a grandparent who has taken on child care responsibilities but needs support in the form of child care.
Board member Christie Slaughter said prior to the pandemic the nonprofit was scheduled to open their facility months ago.
“We had many fundraisers planned over the last four months. We were hoping to have opened four months ago after the fundraisers. Because of the COVID restrictions, we had to cancel all of those fundraisers,” Slaughter said.
When COVID-19 forced team members to cancel their large fundraisers and delay their opening, they decided get more creative. “We thought ‘What can we do to make it safe for the community and safe for the board?’ So we picked Krispy Kreme because who doesn’t love Krispy Kreme donuts?” Slaughter said.
The board members traveled to Billings, picked up donuts, and then distributed them in the Holiday Village Mall parking lot.
Slaughter said the fundraiser generated plenty of community support, but the team needs more donations in order to open and stay open in the future.
“As always, we had huge support from the community, and this is gonna be our last fundraiser before we open. However, we will always be looking for financial donations because this is a nonprofit home,” Slaughter said.
Toby's House is named to honor October Perez, known to some as “Toby,” who was only two years old when she died in Great Falls from abuse at the hands of her mother’s boyfriend in 2011.
To learn more, volunteer, or donate, click here to visit the website, or click here to visit the Facebook page. You can also call 406-770-3191 or email admin@tobyshousemt.org.
- Toby's House Crisis House aims to prevent child abuse
- Progress being made on Toby’s House Crisis Nursery in Great Falls
