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Family & Youth E-Newsletter, Lake Charles, LA April 2010 |
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April is Child Abuse Awareness Month
April is Child Abuse Awareness month,
and what better way to raise awareness about child abuse and neglect
than to tell the story through a local agency that provides
CASA began in 1986 in Seattle,
Washington, and has since spread nationwide with over 1,000 programs
providing volunteer advocates for abused and neglected children.
Locally, CASA began as a project of the Junior League of Lake
Charles under the leadership of then Assistant District Attorney and
now Family & Juvenile Court Judge Lilynn Cutrer. It was on September
3, 1996, that Judge Billy Ezell swore in Barbara Downer, Dawn Redd,
Jill Kelly, Susan Couch, Jennifer Gill, Della Rose, Monet Brashear,
Kathy Chafin, and Nathalie Miller as the first in our community to
Stand up for a Child as trained CASA volunteers. In 1999, CASA
became a program of Family & Youth, and since that time has grown to
provide services not only in Calcasieu Parish, but in Allen and
Jefferson
While these numbers are impressive, there is more to be done. The most recent statistics show that currently there are over 440 children in foster care in Southwest Louisiana, a number that has grown substantially over the past several years. Providing a CASA for every child that needs one is a moving target, but for the sake of those children it’s a goal that our community has to meet.
CASA volunteers serve 3 roles. First, they are the eyes and ears of the court, gathering information about their child or children and their family that otherwise might not be available to be considered when decisions are made about what is in the best interest of that child. Secondly, CASA’s are the voice of the child, reporting the information they’ve
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Family & Youth web page is designed for educational and informational use only. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for personal medical and/or mental health attention or treatment. You may contact us at 337-436-9533 for further information. Family & Youth, 220 Louie Street, Lake Charles, LA 70611, 337-436-9533, www.fyca.org Copyright Family & Youth Counseling Agency, Inc. 2010 |
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advocacy services on behalf of these special children. CASA (a
program of Family & Youth) is the acronym for Court Appointed
Special Advocates, and it is also, appropriately, the Spanish word
for home, symbolizing the safe, loving, permanent home that all
abused and neglected children long for. Children with CASA’s are
less likely to spend time in long term foster care, are less likely
to reenter the child welfare system, and have a better chance of
having a safe, loving, permanent home. Simply put, abused and
neglected children with CASA’s have a better chance at having a
childhood. 
Davis
Parishes as well. In 2009, 76 volunteers spent 1,476 hours training
to be a CASA, and devoted another 3,271 volunteer hours and drove
over 48,951 miles in serving 233 abused and neglected children.
That’s dedication and commitment!