Pediatric nurse keeps helping kids after retirement by serving as a CASA volunteer
CASA Volunteer Cindy Budek Cindy Budek spent 40 years working with kids as a pediatric nurse practitioner at a hospital in Chicago. She dedicated her career to helping kids, including those with complex problems. Now that she has retired and moved to Lexington, Ky., she is still helping kids in a different way: as a […]
He found the ‘cause that fits for me.’ It’s CASA.
CASA Volunteer Michael Raulinaitis Michael Raulinaitis is a single dad with two daughters, who have grown up into a nurse and a physical therapist. He works at the Toyota plant in Georgetown and likes to walk to the farmers market when he’s home in downtown Lexington. A few years ago, he was looking for a […]
She was a ‘state child.’ Now she advocates for foster kids as a CASA volunteer.
CASA Volunteer Kelly Pack As a child, Kelly Pack was a “state child” — she was briefly in foster care, then looked after by a relative. “I know the system can fail people. It failed me,” she said. “That almost cost me my life. So I vowed to never allow that to happen to any […]
‘Direct and immediate impact:’ Lexmark employee uses team-building skills to help neglected children
Kathy Edwards has advocated for six children during two years as a CASA volunteer CASA Volunteer Kathy Edwards Kathy Edwards is the kind of person who understands the value of teamwork. She also likes it when she can make a real difference in the world. So when Edwards learned from a close friend about just […]
Siblings in the foster system find hope in a friend
Kayla Pelphrey bonded with her CASA kids, bringing some fun and consistency into their lives Kids’ artworks hanging on the wall in Kayla Pelphrey’s office. The art that hangs on the wall of Kayla Pelphrey’s office isn’t by anyone famous. It isn’t worth a lot of money. But it does represent an investment in the […]
“The children did not deserve what they were going through.”
One central Kentucky woman has improved children’s futures for 10 years as a CASA volunteer CASA Volunteer Judy Papania Every year in central Kentucky, hundreds of children suffer abuse and neglect. Those children then experience instability and uncertainty about their futures as their cases move through the family court system. One Woodford County woman has […]
Peggy Entrekin earns CASA Volunteer of the Month award in Woodford County
CASA Volunteer Peggy Entrekin Woodford County CASA Volunteer Peggy Entrekin is a Volunteer of the Month for the region. Woodford volunteers have now claimed the Volunteer of the Month honor in CASA of Lexington’s seven-county service area twice in 2024. Entrekin is celebrating her five-year “CASA-versary” this month and has advocated for five abused or […]
Patty Overing named a CASA Volunteer of the Month
CASA Volunteer Patty Overing After Patty Overing retired from her career in banking, she began putting more time into her hobbies and family. But she also wanted to do something else with her newly freed schedule. “I was looking for something to do with my time volunteer-wise — a way to serve,” she said. Overing […]
Georgetown woman named a CASA Volunteer of the Month
CASA Volunteer Bev Chandler A Georgetown woman has been named a CASA Volunteer of the Month for her advocacy on behalf of abused and neglected children. Bev Chandler has served as a CASA volunteer in Scott County for just over a year. She has been the voice for two children in the local family court […]
Asbury Theological Seminary Student Earns CASA Volunteer of the Month Honor
CASA Volunteer Julie Turner An Asbury Theological Seminary student has been named a CASA Volunteer of the Month for her hard work advocating on behalf of abused and neglected children. Julie Turner has been a CASA Volunteer for about a year and a half and has advocated for two children in the family court system […]