Home is where the heart is

Whenever we can, we go out into the community and ask kids to draw us something that makes them happy. We get lots of pictures of home - the very thing that Piedmont CASA works so hard to give every child we serve: a home where they can be safe, stable, and loved.

For the Piedmont CASA team, home means our office, the core of our operations. We work here, we meet here, Volunteers train here, and we are within walking distance of the courthouse. For more than ten years, this house has been filled with commitment, compassion, laughter, anxiety, tears, joy...and hope, always hope!

But right now, we need to take care of our home. So on April 17 we are building a playhouse in our front yard. It will be raffled off to help raise $30,000 in matching funds for a Perry Foundation grant. This grant is for repairs and upgrades that will ensure 818 East High Street continues to be Piedmont CASA's home, the heart of our work, for decades to come. Scroll down for more about the Kid's Choice Playhouse Raffle.

Wanna Play?

"Look Out" playhouse to be built in our front yard April 17

Bushman Dreyfus Architects and Peter Johnson Builders have joined forces to design a children’s playhouse and build it on Piedmont CASA’s front lawn. For a $10 raffle ticket, some lucky winner will have a fabulous playhouse just in time for summer! If you don't need a playhouse - you will be able to purchase a ticket for a foster family. Just look for the People Places ticket choice.

Raffle tickets go on sale April 20

Andrea Beatriz Arango

Newbery Honor Winner + Piedmont CASA Volunteer

It’s not every day that a winner of the Newbery Honor for children’s literature decides to become a volunteer for Piedmont CASA. But that’s exactly what Andrea Arango has done. A 2023 honoree for her debut book, Iveliz Explains It All, Andrea balances writing for a living with the demands of her first CASA case.



The book is drawn from Andrea’s own experiences growing up in Puerto Rico, and those she’s seen in her years as a teacher. “Iveliz’s grandmother, whom Iveliz loves very much, doesn’t understand why her granddaughter needs therapy and medication, as she thinks therapy is only for ‘crazy people,’” Andrea explains. “In this book, I wanted to be sure that therapy would be normalized, instead of frowned upon. There shouldn’t be any stigma or shame associated with having mental health needs.” 

Meet Our Newest Board Members

Trina Clark

Take it from new Piedmont CASA board member Trina Clark, a foster parent who’s been involved with Juvenile and Domestic Relations court cases for years: Not everyone in the court system makes the children their top priority. That’s why Trina has found her introduction to CASA so exciting. “All parties in these foster care cases are supposed to pursue what is in kids’ best interest,” she says. “I’ve found CASA Volunteers to be refreshingly unbiased advocates for children.”

James Bennett

As a new board member, James Bennett brings two very different sets of experiences to Piedmont CASA. He’s a technology expert, with a specialty in organizational systems, employed by Charlottesville startup Serqit, Inc. He also gained firsthand knowledge of the local court system when he and his family were involved briefly with the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. He’s determined to bring both experiences to bear in his new assignment.

Lisa McCloskey Keeler

“It seems like I’ve always known about Piedmont CASA,” says new board member Lisa McCloskey Keeler, a member of the Charlottesville community since 2000. “I’m acutely aware of this impactful organization and its incredibly important work.” Lisa is head of the Lower School at St. Anne's-Belfield (STAB). Before that, she was a writing teacher in the STAB Lower School, then English Department chair, and then dean of faculty development.

Jimmy "Magic Man" Miller's Bracket Breakfast

The 8th Annual Bracket Breakfast broke all records and

raised over $70,000 for Piedmont CASA!

Thank you!

Piedmont CASA Voices

Join the Team!