This is the 15174th most frequent Russian word.
полякам
"Полякам" means "to Poles" (dative plural form of "поляки," meaning "Poles").
In this sentence, "полякам" is used in the dative case to indicate to whom the help was provided.
Мы помогли полякам с их проектом.
We helped the Poles with their project.
Here, "полякам" is again in the dative case, showing the recipients of the gifts.
Подарки были отправлены полякам.
Gifts were sent to the Poles.
In this instance, "полякам" is in the dative case, specifying the receivers of the message.