Michael (7 years old) was removed from his parents’ home when police found visible injuries on his neck, face and body. He reported that the injuries were caused by his stepfather. Michael’s mother and stepfather insisted that Michael had harmed himself, but the physician who examined Michael said that was impossible.
Some weeks, you’ll have a packed schedule. Other weeks, you may have just one email to read. This week, my schedule is a little CASA heavy. My CASA kid and I chatted over the weekend, my Peer Coordinator joined me for an in-person visit yesterday, I attended the Heroes for Children Breakfast benefit for CASA yesterday morning, and today I head out to a team meeting and another visit with my CASA kid. Busy, but so worth it! And yes, somewhere in there, I’ll find time to make my work hours and walk my dogs.
Nine-year-old Anna’s mother abused alcohol. She would leave Anna with other people for long periods of time while she went out drinking. When Department of Human Services Child Welfare came to investigate the neglectful situation, they became involved but chose to keep Anna at home with her mother rather than taking her into foster care. They saw that Anna’s grandparents would step in and closely monitor Anna’s safety, and Anna’s mother was motivated to engage in services.
I spent most of this week coordinating a visit with my CASA kid face-to-face. Let me share one of the details that makes CASA of Lane County unique: not all CASA programs are alike. Our overarching mission is to provide a voice for children in foster care, but from county to county, there are different rules and specifications for CASA volunteers.
I just wanted to send a quick thank you to those who donated clothes and time to the Closet-to-Closet event yesterday!
Last week, I tried to be creative with my scheduling and ended up having more trouble than I anticipated. My CASA kid had a team meeting scheduled at a time that conflicted with a work meeting out-of-state.
Before I became a Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteer, I volunteered on CASA’s Recruitment & Retention Committee. It gave me the opportunity to dip my toes in the shallow end of the pool before jumping into the deep blue ocean to give a kiddo a life vest. It took me years to take the leap, but it all started with an invitation to help in a way that was most comfortable for me – by helping CASA with a marketing task.
Samantha (age 2) and Owen (age 4) were taken into foster care because of drug abuse, child endangerment, and their parents’ mental health issues.
This week I’m spending time getting to know my CASA kid’s grandparents. For the ease of writing, I’m going to call my CASA kid Shauna.
I’m going to visit Shauna’s grandparents in their home later this afternoon. They seemed really nice on the phone and she told them about who I am and what I do, so they are looking forward to meeting me, too.
