How the National
CASA Got Started
In 1976, Superior Court Judge
David Soukup of Seattle, WA saw a recurring problem in his courtroom:
"In criminal and civil cases, even though there were always many
different points of view, you walked out of the courthouse at the end of
the day and you said, 'I've done my best; I can live with this
decision,' he explains.
"But when you're involved with
a child, and you're trying to decide what to do to facilitate that
child's growth into a mature and happy adult, you don't feel like you
have the sufficient information to allow you to make the right decision.
You can't walk away and leave them at the courthouse at 4 o'clock.
You wonder 'Do I really know everything I should? Have I really
been told all of the different things? Is this really right?'"
To ensure he was getting all
the facts and the long-term welfare of the child was being represented,
the Seattle judge came up with an idea that would change America's
judicial procedure and the lives of over a million children.
Today, the National CASA
Association represents 930 CASA programs across the country, including
Washington, DC and the U.S. Virgin Islands. National CASA provides
support for starting programs, technical assistance, training and
fundraising, media and public awareness services.
Fact:
An estimated 896,000 children were found to be victims of abuse
and neglect in 2002. This represents 12.3 children for
every 1,000 children in the population were victims of abuse or
neglect.
Fact:
For 2002, an estimated 1,400 children died from abuse or
neglect.
Fact:
Of the children in foster care as of September 30, 2002, 126,000
were waiting to be adopted. Only 53,000 children were
adopted from the public foster care system in 2002.
Fact:
Volunteers contributed more than 9 million hours of volunteer
service in 2003, equivalent to $461 million in taxpayer dollars,
if compensated for their services.
How CASA for the
Tennessee Heartland Got Started
The idea
and planning for an Anderson County Court Appointed Special Advocates
Program began in the summer of 1986. Judge Jennings Meredith had
attended a training conference for the National Council of Juvenile
Court Judges and had learned of a CASA organization in the state of
Washington. According to Linda Scudiere, Vice President of the Board of
Directors, CASA of Anderson County was Meredith's "baby" from
the very beginning. He called a meeting with a group of local attorneys
who were serving as court appointed representatives for juvenile and
asked them to "make it happen."
Judge
Meredith's desire to have a CASA organization was solely in the interest
of the children caught up in court cases. CASA's motto is Speak Up for A
Child and that is precisely what Meredith wanted--a group of trained
volunteers who would be the eyes and ears of the court on behalf of the
children. He knew that for all their efforts, there were times when
legal training and procedures of got in the way of what was really in
the best interest for the children.
Judge
Meredith, on January 2, 1987, wrote that the "Court is pleased to
announce that the important program (CASA) began January 1, 1987, with a
skeleton volunteer crew."
The
Committee to Form CASA for Anderson County began looking for fund to
develop the program, only to find that there first had to be an
organization in place in order to request funds. Scudiere and Terry Kite
literally became the CASA organization--volunteers, directors,
caseworkers, and office staff. However, we still did not qualify as a
not-for-profit organization, so in July, 1987, we merged with the Knox
County CASA. Several people were instrumental in helping CASA of
Anderson County obtain not-for-profit status by writing by-laws. They
were Linda Scudiere, Bob Wilkinson, Chris Hayes, Libby Haynes, Bobbie
Caldwell, and Mary Ann Gross. This enabled CASA of Anderson County
become a free-standing organization.
In 1987,
there were eight CASA organizations in Tennessee, and only three of
those were in East Tennessee: Knox, Sullivan, and Hamblen Counties.
It was in
January of 1988 that CASA got its first paid director, Libby Haynes, a
county probation court officer. But just because CASA now had a
"staff," we still did not have our own office. We first shared
an 8x8 space, as well as a single telephone and an Apple IIE computer,
with another organization. Our other office equipment consisted of a
pay-per-copy copying machine.
Officers
were formally elected in the spring of 1988, and a board was formed
outside of the original steering committee. By July of 1988, CASA was
steadily increasing in size and adding board members. [Complete
list of board members]
In August
1987, Pat Hess was hired as a full time referee for Juvenile Court and
took an active role with the attorneys who were serving Juvenile Court
as Guardians Ad Litem, and later with CASA volunteers. Ellen Kite has
the distinction of being the first CASA Volunteer, serving Anderson
County's children before any formal volunteer training existed. Training
was implemented early on, consisting of two 2-hour training sessions
under the direction of Rose Simpson, Director of the Knox County CASA.
Back to
Top
Compiled by
Bobbie Caldwell
for CASA's 10th Anniversary Celebration
October 6, 1998
National CASA
information compiled by
Michelle Smith, Vista Volunteer, September 20, 2005 |
Revised
by Amy Davis
November 8, 1998 |
|
