HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) announced on Monday a virtual town hall event titled CASA Across the Commonwealth.
Organizers want to increase awareness of CASA volunteers’ advocacy work for abused and neglected children and draw attention to the number of children in the dependency system who could benefit from having a dedicated, trained volunteer, appointed by the Court, assigned to their case. They also hope that this virtual event will increase the number of citizens interested in volunteering to become advocates for children in the dependency system.
The hour-long event is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 23th, at 1 p.m. and is organized by the Pennsylvania CASA Association. Speakers include distinguished participants, including Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, Attorney General Josh Shapiro, Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Teresa Miller, elected officials, judges, and CASA volunteers. The event will stream simultaneously across three virtual platforms: PA CASA’s website, Facebook, and Youtube. All are encouraged to register at: https://pacasa.org/townhall/.
Those interested should register even if they cannot attend at the time of the live event. All registered participants will receive an email notifying them when the videos are available to watch after the premiere.
Across Pennsylvania there are 21 local CASA programs serving children in 27 counties. These local programs have 1,169 CASA volunteers advocating for 2,129. Overall, 21,666 children in Pennsylvania are involved in the Dependency Court system, and eligible to be assigned a CASA volunteer. Once a CASA volunteer is trained, they are officially appointed by a Juvenile Court judge, authorizing them to become involved in the child’s case and gain access to their records. As the Juvenile Court’s eyes and ears for abused and neglected children, the volunteer advocates provide best interest advocacy until a child is placed in a safe, permanent home.
According to Suzy Meyer-Page, executive director of CASA of McKean County, 24 volunteers are serving 31 children in the county’s dependency system. More than 90 such children are hoping for the help of a dedicated volunteer.
“We encourage anyone interested in helping change the course of a young persons’ life to watch this Virtual Town Hall Meeting, and learn how they can genuinely make a lasting impact on the life of a child,” said Meyer-Page.
For anyone interested in volunteering with CASA of McKean County, an application can be filled out on the CASA of McKean County website www.casamckean.org. In addition, CASA staff can be reched by calling the office at 814-568-2170 or leaving an email message at casa@mckeancountypa.org with questions about how to become a CASA volunteer.
