From a CASA volunteer:
"Since I was a young girl, I have always had a passion for helping other people. When the opportunity arose to become a CASA volunteer, I was excited to actually be placed in a position where I could truly help others. Once my training was done, I was assigned a case and quickly realized the impact a CASA has on a child's well-being. The first case that was assigned to me was a one-year-old child who was living in foster placement due to environmental concerns at home. By the time I was assigned to the case, the parents had parted ways and were living in two separate houses but both receiving separate visitations. The caseworker had mentioned the father had a good chance of having the child returned home because he had made significant progress. Because of this, I decided to schedule a home visit at the father's house to observe the interactions between the child and father. When I entered the home, I was shocked to see the living conditions. Not only did the home have an overwhelming smell that made it hard to breathe, but it also had no flooring over the subfloor, no outlet covers, holes in the walls and cabinets, minimal furniture, and multiple animals. At one point, I observed the child eating broken pieces of subflooring at the residence. About a week after the home visit, I receive word the biological father had petitioned the court to regain custody of his child. I was able to write a detailed court report about the conditions of the home. Without my report, the court would have had no idea the conditions of the home were what they were as the agency did not report these findings. It was determined from my court report that the child would not be sent to the home. After the court hearing, the prosecutor walked up to me and stated, "today you saved a child's life. If it had not been for your detailed court report, we would have sent this child home." I know a lot of people wonder how a CASA can help impact a child's life. This example is proof that advocacy is impactful in many different ways. Not only did my advocacy ensure the child was not returned home to an unsafe environment, but it also helped the biological parent recognize the importance of a safe environment. After the court hearing, the biological father started to make improvements to the home to help create a safe environment. "
