Emma Dellopoulos

Emma's Path to Community-Based Mentoring

Emma's Path to Community-Based Mentoring

Treading into unknown territory can be daunting, and the opportunity to join this group of fellows with FLIA was just that. My task was to create a program for YSS where youth who had been through extreme hardship (homelessness, abuse, neglect, etc.) would be paired with volunteer mentors.

Bridging the Gaps: Iowa’s Mental Health Disparity and the Importance of Intervention

Bridging the Gaps: Iowa’s Mental Health Disparity and the Importance of Intervention

During college, I volunteered at the John McDonald Residential Treatment Center in Monticello, Iowa. JMRT is a campus run by Four Oaks, a nonprofit dedicated to helping children in dire circumstances, often involving mental illness.  

Changing with the Times: Community-Based Mentoring

Changing with the Times: Community-Based Mentoring

In 1971, not a single shelter specifically serving runaway youth existed in the state of Iowa. In 1972, that changed when YSS founder George Belitsos opened the first runaway shelter (which later became Rosedale shelter) in the basement of an Ames church.