Elise Person will host three of Youth Advocate Programs™, Inc. (YAP®)’s 50th Anniversary YAP® Making Change Happen events this November. She will host the Nov. 6 Awards Gala in Philadelphia and two events in Harrisburg, Pa., on Nov. 8, the YAP® Making Change Happen 5K Walk/Run and the national nonprofit’s Food Truck Brunch event later that morning.
Elise is a former news reporter whose career took an unexpected but meaningful turn into child advocacy. Originally from the Philadelphia suburbs, she began her journalism career in Columbia, Missouri before moving to Harrisburg, where she found her passion for amplifying the voices of children and families. Through her reporting, she worked closely with nonprofits and advocacy groups across Pennsylvania, shining a spotlight on child welfare, youth justice reform, and legislative change to better protect children.
YAP® is a national nonprofit that delivers community-based services as a safer, more effective and less costly alternative to placing young people in trouble or crisis or who face complex challenges in corrections or residential care facilities.
Elise said among the organizations she collaborated with, YAP® stood out as a favorite. She covered stories highlighting the nonprofit’s mission to keep children out of detention centers, provide alternatives to institutional placements, and partner with public safety systems to help reduce neighborhood violence. She credits YAP® as being instrumental in making her work possible.
Elise’s dedication to advocacy is also deeply personal. The oldest of five siblings, she lost her mother to cancer at just eight years old. Her mother, a speech pathologist with aspirations of attending law school, devoted her life to helping children—a passion Elise proudly carries forward.
Today, she is honored to continue her advocacy and supporting YAP®’s vision of building safer, stronger communities for young people and families.
Learn more about YAP® and the nonprofit’s 50th anniversary events at yapinc.org/50th.
