Lake County juvenile court swears in new CASA volunteers

Eleven new volunteers took an oath on Jan. 23 to serve as Court Appointed Special Advocates in the Juvenile Court of Lake County. They join a force of nearly 300 advocates, specially trained and certified by CASA Lake County, to help protect the welfare of Lake County children involved in juvenile court proceedings. The ceremony in Vernon Hills was presided over by 19th Judicial Circuit Judge Christopher B Morozin.

CASA volunteers perform a valuable service to more than 500 children in Lake County who have been victims of abuse and neglect. Most of the children are in foster care.

"A CASA volunteer is often the one person a child in foster care can count on," said Terri Zenner Greenberg, Executive Director of the nonprofit organization CASA Lake County. "Our goal is to help move kids efficiently through the court system and help get them into permanent homes where they grow up in safety with an opportunity to thrive."

CASA volunteers must successfully complete an in-depth training program conducted by CASA Lake County. The program prepares volunteers to help ensure that the best interests of children are being served and that juvenile court judges are aware of all pertinent issues through regular court reports in each child's case.

"The addition of our new CASA volunteers help to serve the skyrocketing number of Lake County children entering foster care," Zenner Greenberg said. "More volunteers are needed and anyone interested in helping should please contact us at CASA."

The new volunteer advocates are Renee Goldstein, Shel Goldstein, Sandy Ninz and Debbie Simon of Northbrook; Karen Ottenheimer and Mindy Levinson of Buffalo Grove; Candace Tallisman of Bannockburn; Andrea Weingart of Deerfield; Connie Capone of Winnetka; Lita Lindsey of Waukegan; and Val Pienka of Island Lake.

Anyone interested in volunteering with CASA Lake County can contact Debra Lerner-Schmidt, at (847) 383-6260, ext. 202 or dlernerschmidt@casalakecounty.com.