Breakfast Buddies, a club from Central Elementary that mentors kids, allows the Flower Mound High School Spanish students a chance to meet with kids on Fridays from 7:15 to 7:40.

A typical Friday morning might include playing games, doing activities, and forming a bond with the buddy. The interactions with the kids give the high-schoolers a chance to not only form a bond with them, but also make sure that what they’re doing is important to the children’s lifelong goals.

“We have a reflection topic that they complete together each week to make sure we are hitting some of our long term goals,” Breakfast Buddies sponsor Ms. Kenny said, “such as helping the students to dream big, be involved in school clubs and activities, and be motivated to come each day.”

The mentor’s role is different from regular things such as an older sibling, babysitting, or having fun together. The goal for Breakfast Buddies is helping and encouraging the elementary school students to set and achieve their lifelong goals.

“Being in Breakfast Buddies is really rewarding in many ways,” senior Maddie Smit said. “Even though it can be hard sometimes, it’s really special to both the kids and their high school buddy.”

This year is the eighth year for the club to be running.

“I never imagined it would be in its eighth year and still going strong,” Ms. Kenny said. “I imagine the program will be in process as long as the students want it to continue.”

Starting this year, Breakfast Buddies is opening its doors to English speaking students as well as bilingual students from years before. The offer won’t be available to everyone, though. Places in the club are limited due to the amount of kids from the elementary school in the program and are on a first-come-first-serve basis with returning students at the highest priority.

To be a part of Breakfast Buddies, a background check and training for students must be completed. There are information packets about Breakfast Buddies outside of Ms. Kenny’s room, 2640.