Community members can help children in foster care

ODESSA, Texas (KMID/KPEJ) – Community members who feel they have the heart, strength and compassion to speak up for children might find the perfect opportunity at CASA of the Permian Basin.

According to Executive Director Cynthia Warren, volunteers for CASA advocate for the best interests of children in foster care, and are an essential part of the program.

“If you’re interested in becoming a CASA volunteer, you just have to have a desire to help children. You have to be 21 years of age or older” said Warren. “You have to be able to pass state and federal background checks, as well as a CPS check.”

Warren stresses that there is a constant need for these advocates.

“Casa of the Permian Basin covers five counties: Ector, Crane, Loving, Ward and Winkler,” said Warren. “Within those five counties that we serve, we have between 20 and 25 volunteers at any given time. But we need so many more. Ector County continues to be one of the highest rated removal counties per capita within the state, so we’re able to cover about an eighth of the cases that Ector County has, and that’s not considering the other counties we serve. So we need as many volunteers as there are children and families in CPS care.”

Volunteers are trained before they become and advocate. Their duties are an essential part of the program.

“Each month a CASA volunteer has seven contacts that they have to make at minimum. And we want you to do more than the minimum, but at minimum, you have to check in with the child, the family, the parents, the placement, the CPS workers, the attorney for the child, the therapist and the teacher. So, you can get a good idea of what this child is going through, what he needs, what’s going to benefit him or her in the long run to return to their families. So, at minimum, they have to check in and see this child face to face once a month,” said Warren.

These advocates also get to the root of what the children need, making them an important piece to the puzzle.

“I would say, if you’re thinking about becoming a volunteer, or if you want to see what the foster care system looks like , this is your sign, this is your time,” said Warren. “These children are here. They need someone to follow and be the consistent in their life.”

If you’re interested in becoming a CASA volunteer, click here.

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