News from CASA Of Central Texas Inc.

CASA Up Close

CASA of Central Texas advocates for abused and neglected children in the court system by recruiting, training and supporting community volunteers.

Welcome to another edition of CASA Up Close Monthly. Please feel free to contact CASA for more information about anything you read. And, as always, thank you for your continued support.

Letter from the Executive Director

Survey Says...

     Each year we survey our volunteers and key professionals including Child Protective Services workers, attorneys and judges. The surveys highlight what is working in the program and where we can make improvements. From all the feedback there is one big highlight - CASA Volunteers do make a difference, and we need more of them.

     From our volunteers we heard that more than 90% feel they make a difference for the children. This is important because this is the greatest goal of CASA, to empower community volunteers to make a difference in the lives of children. I am pleased to say that none of our volunteers said they don't feel like they make a difference.

     Also, we learned that volunteer advocates would like to see additional training topics, more resources and better communication between all parties on the cases. I am pleased that our volunteers' requests reflect tools to better advocate for their children. We will work to meet these requests.

     From the judges, we heard that they, too, believe volunteers make a difference, but there are not enough of them. One hundred percent disagreed with the statement "There are sufficient volunteers to meet my caseload." And, 100 percent agreed with the statement "Children and families are better served because of CASA volunteer involvement." The judges emphasized they would like a volunteer on each of their cases, with one judge commenting, "If the kids are in the system, CASA is considered good, period. "

     From other professionals including attorneys and CPS workers, we received positive feedback about our volunteers. The attorneys said volunteers are prepared, provide critical information and have a positive impact. They feel the most important roles of the volunteer are to maintain contact and to advocate for services for the children. CPS workers report CASA volunteers act professionally, have an understanding of children's needs, work for the best interest of children, make a difference with the children they serve, and that they would like to see more children served by CASA.

     These are just a few highlights from the survey and I encourage you to delve further. Overall, I am proud of my program, proud of my volunteers, and proud of the relationships we have in the child welfare system. We will continue to emphasize what is working in our program, and make adjustments where we can.

Norma Castilla-Blackwell
Executive Director

Become a CASA Volunteer

CASA Volunteer Toni Urban sworn in March 2014

Sign up for a 2016 Training Session

For more information on training sessions contact Training Coordinator Debbie Haynes at 512-392-3578 or by email, or click here to visit our website.

A New Volunteer Training Course is required for all new Court Appointed Special Advocate Volunteers.

The Volunteer Training Course is a 6-part training series and all 6 classes are required.

February 27 thru March 26, Saturdays

8:30 AM to 1:30 PM, San Marcos

March 9 thru April 13, Wednesdays

1:00 PM to 5:00 PM, San Marcos

March 10 thru April 1, Thursdays

4:30 PM to 8:30 PM, New Braunfels

May 4 thru June 8, Wednesdays

4:30 PM to 8:30 PM, San Marcos CASA Office

May 5 thru June 9, Thursdays

1:00 PM to 5:00 PM, New Braunfels CASA Office

See additional 2016 training dates on our website calendar

San Marcos

Historic Hays County Courthouse Room 101
111 E. San Antonio Street

New Braunfels
CASA office

1619 E. Common Street, Building C

Volunteer Spotlight

Pam Rackler, CASA Volunteer since 2012

"Going through the process of adopting our third son made me aware of the CPS system and the need for advocates for the children. I just felt in my heart that I could make a difference."

"The courts are making decisions that affect the child's future and need someone that is independent from the social service system that observes what the child is going through and can tell the court 'I was there and this is what I saw'."

"You can make a difference in a child's life at a time when they are scared and going through chaos by no fault of their own."

Help Us Recruit Volunteers

Do you love CASA and want to help recruit volunteers? Now you can get the word out by being a host for one of our CASA Voices Tours Information Sessions.

How? You pick a tour date and location that works best for you, commit to invite your friends and join us for the session. Let us do the rest. Our goal is for you to have five of your friends or colleagues attend as your guests and for them to hear why you support CASA. Then a CASA staff member will explain the history of the program, what's involved with being a CASA and how to get started. We believe your personal invitation will go far in encouraging people to learn more about CASA, and help us reach the goal of providing a CASA for every child in State care.

CASA will also invite people through social media and word-of-mouth so expect to see faces new to you, too!

Voices Tours are held from noon - 1 on the first Wednesday of each month in New Braunfels and the second Wednesday of each month in San Marcos. Additional dates and locations are scheduled upon request. Please contact Eloise Hudson if you would like to host a Voices Tour.

Voices Tour Information Sessions

Want to learn more about the role of a CASA Volunteer?
Come to ribbon

our one-hour information session and hear how our volunteers advocate for children who have been abused and neglected.

CASA staff and volunteers will be on hand to share their stories and answer your questions.

Voices Tours

New Braunfels

Wednesday, February 3rd, noon
CASA office

Wimberley

Thursday, February 11th, 11 a.m.

Wimberley Village Library, 400 FM 2325

San Marcos

Wednesday, February 17th, noon
Historic Hays County Courthouse, Room 101

Seguin

Thursday, February 18th, noon

GVEC Community Room, 927 N. Hwy 46

Please RSVP to Eloise Hudson by email or at 830-626-2272.

Would you like to host a CASA Voices Tour in your town? Please contact us!

Lunch provided by Fox's Pizza Den in New Braunfels and Chick-fil-A in San Marcos.

Save the Date

Buona Salute! It is with great pleasure that CASA Of Central Texas is hosting our annual fundraising celebration. You are invited to una festa Italiano!

April 8, 2016

6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Wurstfest Stelzenhaus, New Braunfels

Honoring

Judge Bert Cobb, Hays County

Judge Charles Stephens, Comal County Court at Law #2

Purchase your tickets here

Thank You to our sponsors

Veneto Level

Tomblin Family Foundation

Toscana Level

Mariposa at Hunter Road Apartments

McKenna Foundation

Sicilia Level
Christus Santa Rosa Hospital

Alligator Dental

Support our event, become a sponsor
Sponsorship Information

Continuing Education

A continuing education class was held for volunteers on January 19 at the Public Library in New Braunfels. Teresa Thompson, Adolescent Mental Health Crisis Respite Director of the Scheib Center and Hill Country MHDD spoke about respite care and mental health in adolescents and parents in the community.

Volunteers were given resources specific to mental health services Central Texas and learned of respite care services available in the area free of cost to families.

The door prize winners were Michael Kovalsli and Mike Nash.

The next CE will be held in March in San Marcos, details to come.

Advocates are required to complete 12 hours of Continuing Education per year.

Donate Your Jury Pay to CASA

CASA of Central Texas is now appearing on the county courts

list as a local charitable organization to whom jurors may elect to donate their jury duty pay.

CASA is on the Jury Pay Donation lists of all four of our counties - Caldwell, Comal, Guadalupe and Hays. If you serve as a juror, please look for our name and consider donating to CASA!

Thank you County Judges, Commissioners and Administrators!

Community Supporters

Kwik Chek/McCraw Oil
Wimberley

January 2016

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Upcoming Events

February

3rd

Voices Tour in New Braunfels

Noon -1 p.m.

CASA office