CASA volunteers make big impact for children

When children are taken from abusive or neglectful homes, most of us send up a silent cheer before diving back into more immediate concerns. End of story.

But for those who volunteer as Court Appointed Special Advocates, the story has just begun. It's also likely to wind far into the future.

"We ask for a commitment of at least a year, but many of the cases last a lot longer than that," said Linda Nash, director of CASA of Southeast Missouri, in a Monday story by Southeast Missourian reporter Katherine Webster. "So we would love for [our volunteers] to stay on the case until it's over so that the child doesn't have somebody else backing out on them. They've already had people in their lives they couldn't count on."

Although there are limits to what advocates can do, their primary job is to defend the best interest of an assigned child or group of siblings. That means wading into the lives of everyone in that child's life, from parents to teachers to social workers. Advocates also check to make sure the child's needs are being met and make suggestions to the judge on whether the child should remain in state custody or return to the eye of the storm.

It's a job that requires 30 hours of training and six to 10 hours of service per month. But it also calls for emotional resilience, wisdom and fortitude. It calls for defending the innocent from the darkness that swirls around them, and sometimes even from themselves.

As the local CASA organization celebrates its 35th year in Missouri, it is raising a call for more volunteers. Do you have what it takes to get the job done?

If so, call 335-1726.