San Mateo CA: CASA Seeking Foster Child Advocates - Aug 27 2015 Orientation

VOLUNTEER – EMPOWER – ADVOCATE

Stand Up For A Foster Child

CASA of San Mateo County partners adult volunteers with children who have come under the court’s protection because their parents can’t or won’t take care of them.

What do CASA Volunteers do?

- They LISTEN first. Then they act.

- They get to know the child by visiting them weekly and talking with everyone in that child’s life.

- They use the information they gather to inform judges and others of what the child needs and what will be the best permanent for them.

- They provide consistent caring support and make sure the child doesn’t get lost in the system.

The next upcoming orientation will be held August 27th 2015.

Additional orientations will be held September 10th, September 23rd, and October 6th 2015

TO REGISTER for any of these orientations: E=Mail Natalie@CASAOFSANMATEO.org

MORE INFO: GOTO http://www.casaofsanmateo.org/

ALL Donations are welcome.

The following is taken from their web page:

What We Do

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of San Mateo County partners caring adults with children who have come under the Court’s protection because their parents can’t or won’t take care of them.

Navigating the System Alone

Imagine you’ve been removed from the custody of your parents, not because of something you’ve done, but because of something awful—an alcoholic mother who can’t put food on the table for days in a row, or a father whose threats become punches. You’re funneled into an intimidating court system filled with strangers. There’s no one to provide the love, support, and guidance you need. From now on, you’ll be lonely and scared and will have no consistent, caring adult in your life to help you navigate and overcome life’s challenges. Many kids in this situation just give up. They get into trouble, and they’re at risk of falling into the same bad behavior as their parents and starting the cycle all over again.

You can help

Through the support of our donors, CASA helps stop the cycle. We bring a CASA volunteer into the life of a child whose parents can’t or won’t take care of him—a guardian angel of sorts; a normal, everyday San Mateo County resident who spends time every week with a kid in crisis. Advocates do ordinary things, like go to the movies or attend a dance recital… maybe for the first time in the child’s life. But what sets a CASA volunteer apart is that she also gets to know the child’s world, so she can help the court provide him the best possible life under traumatic circumstances. Mountains of cases are filed in San Mateo County Juvenile Court each year, and the resources to investigate them have dwindled dramatically. Judges are often forced to make life-determining decisions based on sparse information. CASA volunteers make sure that kids don’t get lost in the over-burdened legal system or languish in an inappropriate group or foster home.

CASA of San Mateo CountySobrato Nonprofit Center – Redwood Shores330 Twin Dolphin Drive, Suite 139Redwood City, CA. 94065

Telephone: 650-517-5840
Fax: 650-517-5841

Email: info@CASAofSanMateo.org

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Robert Riechel

For San Bruno Patch

Photo Credit: San Bruno Patch Archives

Source Credit: Natalie at CASA

http://SanBrunoPatch.com

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