Date

Pastor XXX,

YOUR CASA/CHILD ADVOCATE PROGRAMwould like to partner with influential members of the community to raise awareness about the desperate need for children in the foster care system to have a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate)volunteer.

When children are removed from their homes due to evidence of abuse or neglect, they are placed in the care of the state.Foster care serves as a temporary placement for these children, but they are often stuck moving from placement to placement with little hope of reunification. CASA volunteers play a critical role in these children’s lives bybuilding a trusting relationship with these children, determining what is in their best interest and acting as a voice for them in court. They work to reunite the children with their families, and when that is not an option, look for others who may be able to provide safe, loving and permanent homes.

So where do you come in?

We hope to educate and raise awareness of the critical need for CASA volunteers. We believe that by working with pastors and other community leaders we can search the hearts and souls of congregations and find an audience of worshipers who may be willing to volunteer in an effort to help children that have been placed in the child welfare system due to no fault of their own.

CASA volunteers are often the one constant in children’s lives as they go through the child welfare system. Research demonstrates that a one-to-one relationship between children and youth and caring, supportive adults can lead to positive changes in their lives.

Regrettably, Xpercent of the children in the child welfare system in our community do not have a CASA volunteer to advocate for their best interest.Children without CASA volunteers tend to stay in foster care longer and don’t get the help and services they need. Together, through advocacy and partnership, we can make a difference.

Enclosedis a suggested list of ways we can engage your congregation to get involved. I encourage you to review them. I will be calling in a few days to discuss how we can work together to improve the lives of children in care. I also invite you to watch this brief video to see how a young man’s life was transformed thanks to CASA.

If you have questions in the meantime, feel free to contact me at YOUR PROGRAM’S PHONE NUMBER or YOUR EMAIL.

Thank you for your thoughtful consideration,

XX

Partnership Opportunities with CASA

We welcome any other ideas or help you are willing to offer.

  • Play the Chadwick Sapenter PSAon the big screen during church services. Mr. Sapenteris a former foster youth who credits his CASA volunteer, Leslie Foster, with helping set him on the right path.
  • Have the pastor or a CASA volunteer who attends your church or another respected leader participate in filming a public service announcement about the need for more CASA volunteers. We will write the script and we can shoot the PSA and edit it. Or, if you have in-house capabilities, we can give you the script and you can shoot it in house.
  • Place the PSA on the church website and Facebook page.
  • Link [Your CASA program website here]and to the church websites.
  • Spread the word about CASA by including our information in your bulletin inserts and/or newsletters, and by passing out our brochures, fliers or rack cards.
  • Honor a CASA volunteer from your congregation.
  • Invite [Name of Program] or CASA volunteers from your church or county to speak to the congregation.
  • Participate in Blue Sunday with [Name of CASA program]

CASA Fact Sheet

In Texas more than 45,000 children are in the care of the state.African American children represent 30 percent of the children in state care, even though African American children represent only 12 percent of the general population.Disproportionality is the term experts use to describe this overrepresentation and disparity in treatment.

Studies show that African American parents are no more likely to abuse or neglect their children than parents of any other race.Yet African American children are four times more likely to be placed in care than white children. In Texas, disproportionality increases at each stage in the Child Protective Services (CPS) system. This means that African American children:

  • Stay in foster care longer,
  • Have more placements while in care,
  • Receive fewer services while in care,
  • Have lower high school graduation rates, and
  • Leave the system less prepared for adulthood than their white peers.

The issue of disproportionality is complex.Advocates for children and families know that no organization or individual can reverse the effects of disproportionality without the help of many partners.One of the many partners is Court Appointed Special Advocates® (CASA).

In YOUR COUNTY, xxx children are in the state’s care, of whichxxx are African American. We have XXX wonderful volunteers, but only xxx are African American. We need a more diverse volunteer pool so that we can match children with volunteers who are most sensitive to their wants and needs.