Voices for Children is looking for volunteers to speak up for foster children in court, school and medical situations to make sure their needs are met.
The San Diego nonprofit, which also serves Riverside County, started its annual campaign called “Your Voice, Their Future” to encourage community members from all walks of life to become Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASAs.
Voices for Children trains and supports CASA volunteers to advocate for foster kids as they face court hearings, attorneys, social workers and new homes.
It hopes to recruit enough volunteers to help serve 150 youths in foster care who are on Voices for Children’s waiting list for a CASA volunteer. The nonprofit is especially in need of male and Spanish-speaking advocates. The campaign runs through May 1, which is the start of National Foster Care Awareness Month.
A CASA volunteer gets to know a child in foster care and becomes familiar with everyone involved in the child’s life, such as parents, family, teachers and therapists, so that informed recommendations can be made to the court that are in the child’s best interest.