As child abuse and neglect worsens, more CASA volunteers are stepping up to help kids

Fayette Family Court judge says cases are worse now than they ever have been

62 new CASA volunteers have been added by CASA of Lexington during 2023

CASA volunteers improve outcomes by connecting with children and advocating for their needs

New CASA volunteers are sworn in at the CASA of Lexington office on Oct. 17. The newest class of CASA volunteers will serve children across the nonprofit’s seven-county service region.

Cases of child abuse and neglect have been getting more extreme since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Fayette County Family Court Judge Traci Brislin. But Brislin said a growing number of new CASA volunteers in central Kentucky represent a ray of hope for children who might otherwise fall through the cracks.

Brislin swore in 14 new Court-Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers for CASA of Lexington this Tuesday, bringing the total number of new CASA volunteers added this year to 62. These volunteers could help more than 150 abused and neglected children over the next year in the seven counties served by CASA of Lexington.

“I don’t know why, but since COVID, we’ve seen some of the worst cases we’ve ever had,” Brislin said during the swearing in ceremony for the new volunteers. “Cases I’ve never envisioned we would have before.”

Brislin said a little boy on one recent case has been through unimaginable trauma involving physical and sexual abuse. The boy disclosed a lot of what happened to him to social workers, police and investigators, but it wasn’t until he received a CASA volunteer and she bonded with him that he felt comfortable disclosing some of the worst abuses.

“She has been the one person who has been consistent,” she said. “He trusts her. … He couldn’t protect himself. And she has been the only one who has really been able to (make him feel protected).”

CASA volunteers complete a 30-hour training and then are matched with children in the family court system. They visit the children monthly, talk to adults in the children’s lives and review records about the children. Then, they provide written reports that help judges make more informed decisions. Children who receive a CASA volunteer get more services and support while they are in care, are moved around less frequently, and are half as likely to re-enter foster care after their cases close.

CASA volunteers regularly get to the root causes of problems for the children they are matched with, said CASA of Lexington Executive Director Melynda Jamison. That can be something as simple as identifying the child is missing a favorite stuffed animal that helps them sleep, or something as life-altering as identifying an overlooked medical condition.

Brislin said she has seen CASA volunteers change the trajectory of a child’s case countless times. She hopes the CASA program can continue growing until every child who suffers abuse or neglect can receive a CASA volunteer.

“I want to thank you for your time in doing this, because I know you’ve got all kinds of things you could be doing with your time,” Brislin told the volunteers. “The fact that you are doing this says an awful lot about you as a person and your heart. It’s not always going to be easy work — in fact, it will be very hard work. But it will be the most meaningful and wonderful thing you could possibly do with your time.”

The newest volunteers sworn in Tuesday are Amanda Betzing, Cindy Budek, Morgan DeChene-Arvin, V de la Vega, Brooke Fatzinger, Autumn Grace, Madelyn Grant, Susan Maupin, Erin Peel, Lisa Ramirez, Kelly Sampson, Casey Sanford, Shreya Tamilselvan and Barbara Waldmann-Ward.

CASA of Lexington is currently able to serve about 20% of the abused and neglected children in its service region — Bourbon, Fayette, Garrard, Jessamine, Lincoln, Scott and Woodford counties. More volunteers are needed, and the next training for new volunteers begins Jan. 9, with classes in Lexington on evenings and weekends.

You can view the training schedule at www.casaoflexington.org/training and you can apply to be a CASA volunteer at www.casaoflexington.org/apply.