Sioux Falls called upon to help fill shortage of mentors that has hundreds of kids waiting for positive role models

City officials say community involvement key to creating positive futures for area youth, at-risk adults

A shortage of mentors in Sioux Falls is holding the community back, and top officials at City Hall are calling on residents and businesses to do something about it.

Nearly four years after Mayor Paul TenHaken and the Rotary Club of Downtown Sioux Falls launched the regional mentorship initiative known as Sioux 52, community support organizations are still in need of adults who they can connect with youth and other individuals in need of positive role models.

“Whether it’s around youth getting in trouble, men and women who’ve been incarcerated that are coming back into our communities and need help … people look to the government or the police department or to nonprofits to deliver those services,” TenHaken said during a news conference Tuesday morning highlighting a continued need for mentors in Sioux Falls. “But a lot of times, a mentorship relationship is the best thing you can do to deal with some of those challenges.”

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