MISSOULA - The Confluence Center downtown was built as a community hub for non-profits, and six months since its inception, it’s doing just that.
Headwaters Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes well-being and health for all Montanans, opened the Confluence Center on West Main Street in December of 2023.
Inside, the space is equipped with up-to-date technology for Zoom conferences, as well as in-person events.
Along with various non-profit events, they host First Friday every month with different visiting artists. In the back of the building, Headwaters has worked to make it a space for outdoor activities and events.
“We’ve always had a vision that the Confluence Center would not only be the inside of the building but also this back space, so that when it’s nice weather in the summertime, people can utilize this space,” Brenda Solorzano, Headwaters Foundation CEO says. “Hopefully food trucks, bands, outdoor kid activities.”
Solorzano says they plan to beautify the alley with lots of art, even on the trash cans. Their first step was commissioning a mural from Billings artist Rillie Tané.
“In order to make it a more welcoming space we wanted to make sure we had some art in the building,” Solorzano says.
The mural was always planned for the building’s back wall, but the organization was waiting for the perfect piece and the perfect artist to begin.
“It’s just taken us a while to find the right artist and the right concept to be able to bring it to the building and to the community,” Solarzano says. “One of the things we want to do is represent Montana’s beauty. So the mural is actually going to incorporate a lot of the scenery from around the community– the wildlife and the beautiful mountains that surround us. So hopefully that makes this place come a little more alive in this back alley.”
Solorzano invites the community to their First Friday events, where there will be music, food, drinks, and, of course, art. July’s artist will be Rillie Tané, who says she plans to finish the mural around July 13, 2023.
“I think that this is a community space, it isn’t only for nonprofits. So invite people to come out and participate in this community event,” Solorzano says.
