Anything But Ordinary...A CASA Kid Gets to Play

How many times have you passed a soccer field on an autumn Saturday and seen the kids running back and forth, the parents chatting with each other while they watch the game, the coaches calling out directions? Just an ordinary part of suburban life.

For one of our CASA kids, that experience is anything but ordinary. Katie* is fourteen, and is living in her third residential (institutional) placement in the past three years. In 2008, her adoptive family returned her to the custody of the state. They could not deal with her emotional issues, the debris caused by a childhood of neglect and abuse. In social services parlance, it was a “broken adoption”. In 2010, the Washtenaw County Juvenile Court referee asked for a CASA to be assigned to Katie.

It took a year to find a CASA who was able to make the 166-mile round trip to visit Katie every week or two. (Over 20% of our CASA kids live outside Washtenaw County because of the lack of foster homes and residential facilities.)

In early 2011, a CASA stepped forward.

She has been a vital advocate for Katie, and is making sure that she experiences some of the activities of an ordinary childhood. This fall, Katie is playing on a travel soccer team in her community, due to the efforts and persistence of her CASA. The CASA Cinderella Fund** has paid for Katie’s registration, her uniform, and a new soccer ball. We thank this CASA, and all the other CASAs who work so hard for their CASA kids. They are anything but ordinary.

*Name changed for privacy

**Friends of CASA gratefully acknowledges the Kiwanis Club of Downtown Ann Arbor for a Cinderella Fund grant, and those who donated to the Cinderella Fund at Rockin' the CASA 2011.

Michigan CASA Story

Contributed by: Stephanie Gunther

On August 22, 2006, our lives changed! I did something I never do - I changed my office message noting that I would be at another building for the day rather than just picking up voicemail messages at the end of the day.

That afternoon, I received a call from our licensing worker asking if I would consider taking three children and doing an emergency license increase.  They had a sibling group who was going to have to be split up. My son, then 15, agreed to share his room with K who was 4.5 years old, B age 3.5, and M, who was 6.5, joined our family the next day.

It was the oddest thing feeling.  A van pulled into our driveway.  Our caseworker opened the side door of the van and their sat three tiny little people.  B had fallen asleep on the twenty minute trip to our home and the tears hadn’t yet dried.  I was terrified, they were terrified, and as a first time foster mom, I had no idea what a journey we were going to embark upon.

The kids were going to be with us just a short time.  Mom and Dad were separated, with Mom living with an abusive boyfriend.  Dad was in jail.  It was felt that once he was free that he would quickly regain custody.  I was naïve and wasn’t sure I should buy Christmas presents!

Within a few days of the kids arriving, we had our first visit from our CASA who had been working on the case prior to them coming into formal care.

As the days became weeks, it became apparent that these kids who were nearly 40 years younger than I am had more life experience then I do.  Kids, who the first time you asked them to drag over the toy box to do a toy sort asked if it was time to sell their toys.  Kids who seemed to always announce things such as "I really like it that you cook the hotdogs" while in a crowded grocery store; or yell when Daddy gets out of jail in Target!  They began to grow and thrive.

Visits with our CASA continued, typically each Sunday afternoon.  As the kids began to relax, it became apparent that secrets were being kept.  Behaviors began to escalate, and, as October came to a close, the Judge ordered visitation suspended.  By December, we were down at CAN council trying to determine if the kids could provide credible testimony to see their biological parents arrested abuse.  In early winter, our family court Judge was giving notice that TPR proceedings would be started soon.  In May, TPR occurred, and in January of 2008, it was upheld.

During this time, it took an entire team of people to support these three little people.  M started kindergarten nearly two years late. B and K started pre-school.

On February 4, 2008, we became a legal family.  Many days continue to be a struggle. When necessary, I can list the alphabet soup that is linked to each of them in some combination: PTSD, survivor of SA, ODD, RAD, FAS. Thankfully, we have days when they are simply growing children who laugh, play and bicker like brothers and sisters do. On the rough days, when they are being sent home from school, I try to take a deep breath and remember that a village let these children down when they were infants. The safety net didn’t help their biological mother who was pregnant at 15 and married to her 24 year old “husband” to keep him out of jail.

I regularly remind school officials, our therapist and our psychiatrist, as well as our friends and family that they are part of our village.  All of us need to work together to do the best job we can to see that these three are productive members of our collective society. I am pleased that after the initial shock, most adults have indeed stepped up to help rather than judge.

To each of you who read this and are part of the safety net of a child or group of children I thank you.  No role is more important than helping to raise productive children, who feel safe.

Local CASA Success Story

I am a recently licensed foster mother in Washtenaw County and have had the great pleasure of working with Kathy P. who is the CASA for my new foster son. I wanted to reach out to all of you because I think it’s important for leaders to know about successes as much as they are notified when problems arise.

As I learned more about the CASA program and worked with Kathy, it became clear to me that she was modeling the CASA core values each and every moment. She has been and remains a vital team member in my child’s case.

I will not digress into the details of this particular case, but I can assure you that I am convinced that without Kathy, things would not have worked out and gone as smoothly as they have. She is truly only interested in the child’s highest good and has kept fiercely to that path and been a voice for him in times of great turmoil. She has developed key relationships and I’ve seen various other team members stop and take note of her voice, which then resulted in a key change in direction or a return to the path.

The CASA program is a fine example of a public/private partnership and Kathy P. is one of your shining stars.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Julie Palmer

Local CASA Volunteer's Success Story

Contributed by: Fran G.

I was given my first case in February of this year a family of three children: A 13-year-old boy with mild autism, a 9-year-old girl, and a 4-year-old, all living with a Great Grandmother (74 years old).

The children have lived with their great grandmother for 4 years. There were so many questions that needed to be answered and I found that I had the time to find those answers. The lawyers, and social workers all cared for the family but lacked the time to get to know the family as well as I could.

I found, for example, that the 13-year-old boy had missed 54 days of school and had been late for his first hour class 34 times. There were several reasons, and all were easy to fix.

He needed an alarm clock, needed to stop spending the night at his favorite Aunt's house, and needed to take responsibility. I told him he was not allowed to be late or miss school anymore. I was able to check daily via a computer how his grades were and his attendance, and so was he.

From that day on, he has not missed a day of school and is on time. His Great Grandmother needed some help also with her insurance and finding the programs that would help the children and her. I had the time to help her. The little sister needed to be in an outside activity, and with Ava's (CASA supervisor) help, she is now playing baseball; she loves it and they are winning every game! The little sister will also be going to a two-week YMCA summer camp and is so eager to go.

All this family needed was someone that had some time to help with a few issues. With CASA, the possibilities are endless. I had the support of their social workers, lawyer, and Ava. I also had the training that prepared me and the on-going seminars and meetings that support me.

It has been my privilege to be in this family's life and to be a CASA volunteer.

Alarm clock source, baseball picture source

A Local CASA Success Story

Although reunification was the goal, the mother was not making progress in what she needed to do to get her children back.

The CASA volunteer assigned to the case, who has a Master's degree in social work and and previous work experience in the child welfare system, observed the mom and felt that the mom's behavior indicated depression. The CASA volunteer asked that the mom be evaluated for clinical depression.

Even though the mom's attorney was defensive towards the request, a referral was made to the reunification program, and the mom was evaluated and diagnosed for depression. With the help of mental health professionals, and a regiment of effective medication, the mom made a turn-around. She is well on her way to getting her children back!

Most Recent Washtenaw County CASA Statistics

Contributed by: Ferlie Yruma

- 78 kids served
- 26 volunteers actively advocating for kids
- 11 on leave but still interested or actively working on fundraising and community awareness
- Class of 6 - 8 new volunteers to begin training on Oct. 28th

CASA Success Story

Biological brothers, who were split up, were able to keep in touch because their CASA volunteer was willing to drive between Detroit and Marshall for them to have contact with each other.

The CASA volunteer would bring the younger boy, who was in foster care in Marshall, down to Detroit for his orthodontist appointments (which had begun when he was in residential placement there). They would then pick up the older brother, who lived in Wyandotte, and go to dinner, the park, etc.

CASA Success Story

A two year old was reunited with her biological father after the CASA volunteer was able to give the judge some perspective and feedback on exaggerated allegations of neglect that her foster mother was making about the care she got during visits with her Dad.

The child had been living with her foster mom since birth and the foster mom was having separation issues.

Photo courtesy of Calgary Counselling Centre.

Washtenaw County CASA Success Story

Although reunification was the goal, the Mother was not making progress in what she needed to do to get her children back.

The CASA Volunteer assigned to the case, who has a Master's degree in Social Work and previous work experience in the child welfare system, observed the Mom and determined that the Mom was depressed. The CASA volunteer asked for an evaluation of this issue.

Even though the Mom's attorney was defensive towards the request, a referral was made to the reunification program, and the Mom was evaluated for depression. She was found to be depressed and was put on medication.

She has made a turn-around and is now making good progress towards getting her children back.

Washtenaw County CASA Success Story

source: http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/home/tourism/mhc-sports-heading1.jpg

A 17 year old, who was homeless due to parental abandonment, managed to graduate high school and was offered a sports scholarship to a major public university. Due to her circumstances, she was unable to follow through on the steps necessary to pin down the scholarship.

However, with the assistance of her CASA volunteer, she applied to a community college (nearby the major public university), applied for financial aid, and located a place to live in a timely fashion so she was able to start the fall semester.

She now practices with the major public university sports team. She hopes to eventually transfer schools, and perhaps be able to take advantage of the scholarship previously offered to her.

Jimmy's Story - My Experience as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA)*

by Mary, CASA Volunteer

*Some details have been changed for confidentiality.

There is a little boy who provides the inspiration for my CASA work.

How I Met Jimmy

I met Jimmy* when he was two weeks shy of his ninth birthday, and he looked like a kid out of Disney central casting. He had blond hair, blue eyes magnified by eyeglasses, was a bit on the short side, and had a brilliant smile that melted your heart. The smile was usually accompanied by a quick glance to make eye contact, then he’d look away.

I met Jimmy at a large “team decision making” meeting, which occurs when a child in foster care is being moved from one home to another. He had recently been told that the relatives with whom he had lived for two years would no longer be his guardians. His history was documented in a five inch Department of Human Services (DHS) file—when the file is that big, you know it can’t be good.

Jimmy's History

Jimmy’s parents were substance abusers. He had lived with his mom for much of his early childhood, until at age 6, when he was removed from the home because of neglect.

He bounced among several foster homes for the next year, until a relative volunteered to house him. The plan was for his father to complete rehab, get a job, find housing, and regain custody. (Along the way, mom’s rights had been terminated because of lack of compliance with rehab).

After two years of trying to be clean, Jimmy’s father went back to the streets. Jimmy's relatives said they could no longer care for Jimmy. Jimmy’s maternal grandmother in Oklahoma offered to take him, and that plan was put in motion. Unfortunately, she is married to a man with a record for child abuse, and a home study caught that problem before Jimmy got on a plane. Kids in foster care, because of abuse or neglect often, experience multi-layered family dysfunction.

So after four family situations fell through, Jimmy had no one, and was in the hands of the court and DHS. At this point, the judge said this kid needs a CASA. I entered the picture.

A Child with a CASA

I wish I could tell you I made a huge difference, but in fact, someone else became the turning point. During the same week I was assigned as CASA, DHS “matched” Jimmy with a single woman who was seeking to adopt a child.

The first time I met Jimmy, he was also meeting the person who wanted to be his immediate foster mom and eventual adoptive mom. For the next year, I visited Jimmy and his foster/adoptive mom several times per month, helped her run interference with the DHS service providers, talked with his teacher, therapist, lawyer, etc., and helped Jimmy get adjusted to the idea of a non-relative adoption.

My most important role was to let Jimmy feel like someone was his voice in court, speaking for his best interest. Although the initial plan was for a quick adoption, his therapist, adoption worker, and I agreed that he needed more time, so while he lived with his foster mom, the adoption finalization was extended until he said he was ready, a year after moving to her home. They are doing well, and he is now part of a large, close extended family.

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