CASA Kane County offers training, asks men to volunteer

Posted January 01, 2015 10:00 pm

Submitted by CASA Kane County

CASA Kane County will hold general information meetings for individuals interested in becoming a Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteer for abused and neglected children.

A Court Appointed Special Advocate is an everyday citizen, specially trained by CASA Kane County, who is appointed by the juvenile court judge to advocate for the safety and well-being of children who are victims of abuse and neglect. CASA volunteers are appointed as guardians ad litem for children 21 and younger and act as the eyes and ears of the judge by documenting each child's circumstances and making recommendations for services and permanency. The goal is to help ensure that every child lives in a safe and permanent home. This could mean reunification with their parents, placement with relatives, or adoption by a loving family.

If you are at least 21 years old and want to learn more, RSVP to Debra McQuaid, volunteer and outreach coordinator, at (630) 444-3366 or debm@casakanecounty.org to attend one of the meetings.

Evening information sessions will be from 6 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays, Jan. 6 and 20, in the upstairs room at Graham's 318, 318 Third St., Geneva.

Daytime sessions will be offered in the CASA offices in the historic Kane County Courthouse, 100 S. Third St., Suite 460, in Geneva. Those sessions will be from 11 a.m. to noon Mondays, Jan. 5 and 12; 1 to 2 p.m. Wednesdays, Jan. 7 and 14; 9 to 10 a.m. Thursdays, Jan. 8 and 15; and 11 a.m. to noon Fridays, Jan. 9 and 16.

Only about 24 percent of CASA volunteers are men, but more than half of the organization's caseload involves boys and young men in need of strong role models.

CASA Kane County also will have special recruitment meetings that are targeted to men interested in volunteering. These meetings will be held 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays: Jan. 7 at Two Brothers Roundhouse, 205 N. Broadway St., Aurora; Jan. 14 at EvenFlow, 302 W. State St., Geneva; and Jan. 21 at Elgin Public House, 219 E. Chicago St., Elgin.

For more information, visit casakanecounty.org.

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