About CASA
Testimonials
Bobby's Story
As long as I can remember I heard sayings like, "things happen for a reason" and "he/she was in the right place at the right time". They sound like good excuses for why things happen. I have always felt very Blessed to have never moved from my home town. I was always surrounded by a loving family, cherished friends, satisfying careers, and a comfortable home. Then about four years ago my husband and I were faced with the indescribable decision to relocate to the Chicago area. At that point we had to leave our immediate and extended family as well as friends and church family. I had no current plans of retiring from teaching preschool or leaving my "after school" activities.
Read More
Hope Can be Lost or Found
I have been a CASA working on one case for 3 years. When I first started work on my case, I wondered why I was doing this…is there a need? When I would check to see that everything was going right – parents doing services, visits on time, children taken care of – everything seemed to be in order. The two boys were in a good foster home and the girl was soon placed in residential care due to many emotional issues. Initially the boys were open and comfortable with me. The girl did not want anything to do with me and said I was trying to get in her head.
Read More
What Being a CASA Volunteer Means to Me
By Peggy Wellman, CASA since 2008
Serving as a CASA Volunteer means:
* Being a constant in the life of a child whose world is in flux.
* Being present to be a safe sounding board.
* Being able to listen to the concerns of a child and working to find a viable way for the child to cope with these concerns.
* Understanding that a resolution/moving forward with the case may slowly unfold.
* Giving all parties involved time to "sort through" the circumstances and make decisions.
What Was I Like as a Child?
I have been the CASA/GAL for a family of five children for the last ten years. When the case was assigned to me, the youngest child was two, the oldest nine. Over the years, they have been placed in numerous foster homes and have had a parade of different caseworkers and therapists. I have been the only constant adult in their lives through most of their growing up.
Read more
A Direct and Positive Impact
In April of 2002, I was asked to serve as CASA/GAL on a case involving pre-teens, then aged 12 and 13, who had been in the court system since 1999. Originally, the children's public defender served as their GAL, but the case became very complicated and CASA was assigned. Read more
Kane County Courthouse - 100 S. Third St., Suite 460 - Geneva, IL 60134