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Court Appointed Special Advocates of Somerset, Hunterdon, and Warren (CASA SHaW) 
Issue No.

17

 

 

Did you know that this is CASA's 10th anniversary?  The organization was incorporated in March, 2005.  Since that time we've trained nearly 200 advocates who in turn have served 545 children, of whom 424 (78%) have achieved permanency.  Some went home, some were adopted, some went to live with relatives, and some grew up and moved on.  Whatever their outcomes, we are honored to have been a part of their experiences and to help where we could

 

So many great things have happened this year:

  • We will have served nearly 200 children by June 30th, an increase of about 13% from last year;
  • We recruited 19 new advocates this year, for a total of 85 serving in the tri-counties;
  • We've started the "Traveling Tutor" program, providing academic supports for kids in care who are struggling in school;
  • We've implemented the "Peer Coordinator" model, enabling experienced volunteers to help support advocates and increase children served;
  • We were the first program in the state to undergo a rigorous Quality Review process, which highlighted the best practice advocacy work which our advocates doing;
  • We again participated in "Go Blue for CASA" in honor of Child Abuse Awareness month in April, showing solidarity with kids in our community who've been abused;
  • We've hosted several successful fundraising events, helping us to expand our child advocacy mission.  Your support made it happen!

With all that we have accomplished, we know that we could not have done it without you, our partners in this great work.  Together we can make a difference, one child at a time.

 

With Kindest Regards,

 

Tracey Heisler
Executive Director

 

One Child's Story

Melissa Sluyter is a long-time CASA volunteer. She was most recently an advocate for a young boy with significant physical challenges.  She advocated for many services for him, including physical therapy and appropriate medical interventions.  


 

Because of his physical challenges, he sometimes felt apart from his peers.  Melissa ensured that he was given opportunities for "normal" engagement with other kids, resulting in positive social experiences for him and new friends. Melissa was also very involved in his education, making sure his IEP was being followed, that he was in the appropriate level classes and in the least restrictive environment at school. 


 

Melissa made a tremendous difference in this child's life, not only in terms of his foster care placement but physically, academically, and socially.  She helped to create a better sense of balance for him and to help him see a brighter future.  Awesome job, Melissa!

 

 

About Us
Advocating for children in out-of-home placement under the jurisdiction of the New Jersey Family Court, CASA SHaW, an independent non-profit organization, undertakes recruiting, training and supervising volunteer advocates who endeavor to see that needed services and assistance are made available to these children while in placement and to help move them toward safe and permanent homes.

 

Please know that with every gift of service, time, money, and donations, you do help to give children in our need in our community a voice.  Like our advocates, you are every day heroes.
Bulletin Board
How can you help?
 
If you are an advocate in good standing, we could use your help with: 
  • Office work (filing, shredding, calls)
  • Assistance with setting up and facilitating the upcoming training, scheduled for September/October
  • Attending potluck get-togethers and CASA Cafes - meet your fellow advocates!
  • Contributing to our monthly Advocate Roundtable discussions, which will start in August.

If you are a supporter of the program and want to help, we could use assistance with:

  • Developing partnerships with local businesses and preschools
  • Supporting our "Dine Out for CASA" events and other fundraisers like the 5k and Comedy Night
  • Sponsoring fundraising events
  • Developing our new "Give Every Child a Chance" #GECC marketing campaign
  • Assisting with voiceovers and editing of outreach videos
 
Program Notes
 
We want to thank everyone for their support of our signature fundraising events this year, Comedy Night and CASAblanca Casino Night. We had a record-breaking and generous crowd who attended CASAblanca and raised a lot of money - about $70,000 in all! - in support of our child advocacy mission.

Our honorees, David and Susan Gibbons and the Leadership Somerset Group of 2014 (including Felecia Nace, Bill Weber, Sunil Bhorkar, Lis Staehle, Beverly Pranzatelli, Bhadra Parmar, Dave Frauenheim, and Nancy Petrillo), all did a tremendous job of furthering CASA's child advocacy mission through increasing diversity, expanding the peer coordinator model, and improving our community outreach strategies.  You all have been fantastic partners!

Many thanks to the wonderful donors and sponsors who have given so generously this year, including:

HERO

Dave and Susan Gibbons

Elberon Foundation

Johnson and Johnson IT Services

McManimon, Scotland, & Baumann, LLC

 

PLATINUM

John Gannon, CPA

Zeus Scientific

 

GOLD

Digestive Healthcare Center

First Bank

Jones Lang LaSalle

Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook, & Cooper

Orloff, Lowenbach, Stifelman, & Siegel

Our Town

Rainbow G&J Painting

Micro Company

 

SILVER

Auger Family

Cummins Family

Fallone Group

Hollister Construction

Langan Engineering & Environmental Services

Martinsville Family Practice

Tobiasz Management

Wesselmann-Doran Family

Thomas Dilts, Esq.

The PeopleCare Center for Nonprofits

 

BRONZE

Dameo Trucking

Doggett Corporation

Gena Pemberton

Goldstein Law Firm

Hehl and Hehl

Windels, Marx, Lane, & Mittendorf Law Firm

Shop Rite of Village Supermarkets


If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for an upcoming event, contact us for more information.
 
Thanks too to everyone who puts us down for matching donations through their companies - it makes a huge difference for us.
Staff Spotlight

 

Krista Levy
 
Somerset case supervisor Krista Levy trained as a volunteer advocate before coming on staff.  Of becoming a CASA she says, "It was a unique volunteer experience in that you not only get to work in the trenches with the kids, but you also get to do the research, investigation, and report writing to the court, which was unlike anything I had ever seen."

A Hunterdon County native, Krista is an avid reader and loves to cook, especially baking.  One would not know this about her given her slight frame.

She has a BA in English and a MCJ in Criminal Justice. Krista is also an athlete, participating in many 5k, 10k, and half marathon races. She is engaged to be married next year and lives in Hampton with her fiance, Nathaniel.

Upcoming Events
 
 Mark Your Calendars!

June 1-August 31 - Shoe drive. Donate your new or gently used shoes. Contact info@casashaw.org for more information.  

June 15th - State raffle drawing.  Tickets are due to the CASA office June 10th.  Good luck!

*Fall Preservice Orientation Dates (Choose one):

August 3, 12-1:30 pm, Washington

August 11, 5:30-7 pm, Bridgewater

August 19, 5:30-7 pm, Washington

August 27, 5:30-7 pm, Washington

Sept. 4, 12-1:30 pm Bridgewater

Sept. 8, 5:30-7 pm Bridgewater

 

*See www.casashaw.org for more information.

October 3&4-Superhero Weekend, Comic Fusion, Flemington

October 10th - "Be a Superhero for Kids" 5k race and 1-mile walk, Deerpath Park, Flemington

November 13-Comedy Night Elks Lodge, Bridgewater
CASA's Board of Trustees
 
Thanks to all of our board members for the time and support they give to CASA SHaW, and welcome to our newest board members, Karen Thomas, Roger Mellick, Ebony Foster, Gena Pemberton, and Juanita Foster!
 
Deb Cummins, President
Alice Condo, Vice President
Brian Auger, Secretary
Joe Westlein, Treasurer
Suzanne Fiorino, Member-at-Large

 

Eliot Goldstein, Trustee
Marie Hughes, Trustee
Gayle Rogers, Trustee
Mariann Bruno, Trustee
Colleen Carolonza, Trustee
Gena Pemberton, Trustee
Roger Mellick, Trustee
Karen Thomas, Trustee
Juanita Painson, Trustee
Ebony Foster, Trustee

Thanks to Kelley Dameo, Chris Corsini, Naeemah Sainte-Rose, and Colin Fletcher for their service this past year!

We are currently recruiting new board members.  Interested?  Please contact Eliot Goldstein at egoldstein@egoldsteinlawfirm.com

Did You Know?
 

 Did you know that children in foster care suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) at twice the rate of Gulf War veterans?  Think about what that really means in terms of lost potential.  


 

CASA can help by advocating for appropriate services for these struggling young ones.

  

 
Become an E-Helper or part of the CASA Crew!

 

If you would like to help in other ways, sign up to become an E-Helper or CASA Crew member. 

 

When needs arise  for material things like air conditioners, dressers, or to fill a wish for a child in need, we'll send our E-Helpers an email describing the need.  If you can fill it, just let us know.  It is that simple.

 

CASA Crew are volunteers who may not have time to serve on a board or be an advocate but still want to help with events or tasks that need to be completed, large or small. 

 

Contact Tracey Heisler at tracey@casashaw.org or 908/689-5515 to sign up.

10 Child Abuse Prevention Tips from Prevent Child Abuse America:
 
  1. Be a nurturing parent.
  2. Help a friend, neighbor or relative. Parenting is hard.
  3. Help yourself. You might need a time out.
  4. Never shake a baby; it could result in severe injury or death.
  5. Get involved in your community and help kids.
  6. Help to develop parenting resources at your local library.
  7. Promote child abuse prevention programs in schools.
  8. Monitor your child's television, video, and internet viewing/usage.
  9. Volunteer with a local child abuse prevention program (like CASA!).
  10. Report suspected abuse or neglect if you have reason to believe a child has been or may be harmed, 1-877-NJABUSE
 
Social Media and CASA SHaW

 

We invite you to follow us on Twitter (@CASA_SHaW) and on Facebook (CASA-SHaW).  You can also visit our  website, www.casashaw.org, 

for information and updates.

 

 

Advocate Spotlight

Congratulations to our 18 newest advocates, who completed their training and were sworn in this year. Good luck to them on their new cases!

Fall 2014
Daphelene Boyer-Nicolas
Millie Guiteau
Andrew Pankratz
Patty Hernandez
Steve Heller
Pooja Maggon
Joanne Vinciguerra
Joseph Vinciguerra
Katie Wood

Spring 2015
Tim O'Brien
Terry Eyler
Elaine Kramer
Sue Sutch
Susan Diana
Kaitlyn Eaton
Darlene Kornegay
Jennifer Meadows
Winde Rivera

 

 

 
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