Growing the heart of our mission

Growing the Heart of Our Mission

Since our founding in 1995, Piedmont CASA has supported and advocated for over 2,400 boys and girls in Charlottesville, Albemarle, Louisa, and Greene. As we come to the close of our third decade of service, we decided to prepare for the fourth decade by embarking on a comprehensive strategic planning process.

The resulting 3-year plan will usher Piedmont CASA into its next decade of serving children in the Central Virginia area, and it will be a foundation and guide for our expansion into three new counties: Fluvanna, Madison, and Orange...

Strategic Goals: 2023-2026

Strategic Goals Infographic

Expansion

A Time to Grow

"There is a child living in Albemarle County who has been removed from her home due to allegations of abuse and neglect. She is fortunate that the Judge reviewing the facts of her case assigns her a CASA Volunteer to advocate on her behalf. There is another child who lives a mile or two east of her who has also been removed due to abuse or neglect. This child is not so fortunate. There is no CASA program in her county; no one advocates just for her."

Read more about Piedmont CASA's three-phase expansion plan in our blog.

Piedmont CASA Voices

Hello Fluvanna!

We pitched our tent at the Palmyra Arts Festival

Fluvanna is Phase 1 of our expansion, so on Saturday, June 10, Piedmont CASA went to the Palmyra Arts Festival. We met lovely people - and perhaps some future Piedmont CASA Volunteers! Plus kids of all ages created fabulous artwork to help tell the story of our kids. (You'll see more in our Annual Impact Report this fall.)

Why Piedmont CASA?

"Going through Piedmont CASA's Volunteer training, getting to know our staff, and day-to-day involvement with the board have been eye-opening experiences for me. I have been extremely fortunate in my life, and it is a humbling and inspiring experience to see the dedication and impact of our staff and volunteers."

“If the courts could appoint CASA Volunteers to cases earlier, before they entered the foster care system - I believe the children would be less likely to enter the foster care system at all. Their advocacy and dedication is that important."

CASA Works

CASA Volunteers are dedicated

The case was coming to a close. When the final hearing date came around, the CASA Volunteer was nursing her newborn. But she was determined not to miss this milestone event in the life of her CASA child. She brought her baby to court and asked the judge for permission to stay. Judge Pather happily agreed to have the little visitor, and the CASA Volunteer was thrilled to witness the reunification hearing for which she had advocated.

CASA Volunteers pay attention

Twelve-year-old Lucy was not doing well in school. Her CASA requested medical records and saw that Lucy had not been provided with a prescription for her ADHD medication. She notified the Department of Social Services and they overnighted the medication. Lucy's schoolwork has improved.

Drawings are from the Kids4Kids Gallery, artwork donated by kids in our community to help us tell the story of CASA kids.

Congratulations!

32 Piedmont CASA Volunteers Honored with President’s Volunteer Service Award

The President’s Volunteer Service Awards (PVSA) go to the most exceptional volunteers in our nation. It honors how their engagement positively impacts their community, and how their examples inspire others to act. President Bush created the Volunteer Service Award in 2003. The PVSA is awarded annually at the Bronze, Silver, and Gold levels based on hours of service. Each year, scores of Piedmont CASA Volunteers donate up to 12,000 hours in their advocacy for children and youth in foster care. These awards were presented during National Volunteer Week April 16-22.

SILVER

Elizabeth Adam

Karen Minor

Janelle Rutt

Marjorie Sherburne

BRONZE

Daniel Alexander

Jane Brennan

Patricia Castelli

Diana Dale

Cathy Eberly

Kathy Floyd

Meredith Gillet

Fritz Hudson

Rebecca Keese

Aradhana Khubani

Martin Matthew

Debbie McPhillips

James Miner

Becky Minor

BRONZE

Kelly Moore

William Murray

Rebecca Pierce

Kathleen Quinn

Marjory Ruderman

Wanda Shuster

Margaret Snoddy

Amy Stewart

Marilynn Sting

Heidi Trebour

Helen Wanner

Jean Wardell

Janet Whitmore Parker

Meet our Newest Volunteers

On May 23, 2023, the Honorable Areshini Pather gave the oath to seven newly minted Piedmont CASA Volunteers. They are flanked by Piedmont CASA President Kate Duvall on the left and Board Co-Chair Joel Reich on the right. The new CASA Volunteers are: Quyen Duong, Caroline Fernandez, Febe Figueroa Zelaya, Anne Perkins, Michael Schram, Stephanie Schlecht, and Kathryn Thomas. Congratulations!

Volunteer + Staff Potluck

At any given time, there are around 90 Piedmont CASA Volunteers working on cases. We think they are all amazing - so we are planning to increase the number of opportunities they have to meet one another. On May 19, we hosted a potluck at Penn Park and learned something else about our Volunteers - they fix a fabulous spread!

Playhouse Raffle