editor@yourmonthlypaper.com
December 2012
Serving the Lafayette Community
Help Local Children, Become a CASA Volunteer By Fran Miller Every year in Contra Costa County, more than a thousand neglected or abused children find themselves unable to live safely at home. These children end up in the care of the court system where into their lives come dozens of strangers: police, foster parents, social workers, judges, lawyers, and likely a CASA volunteer. CASA stands for “Court Appointed Special Advocate.” These trained volunteers advocate for neglected children, making sure they do not get lost in the over-burdened legal system or languish in an inappropriate group or foster home. CASA volunteers maintain ongoing communication with all parties involved in a court case to best serve the child's interests and identify and address the child's needs. For many of these children, their CASA volunteer may be the one constant caring adult presence in their lives, providing companionship and consistency.
Do You Have an Old Bike Needing a New Home?
Charlie Mead has been executive director of CASA of Contra Costa County for the past four and a half years, and he was previously director of the Marin County program for seven years. As director, he works with a volunteer board of directors, a paid office staff of seven, and with the program volunteers in achieving CASA’s mission of recruiting, training, and supporting its volunteer advocates. He is the public face of CASA, introducing the agency’s work to the community through presentations to a variety of civic, governmental, and private sector audiences. His passion for his work is palpable. “I have the great honor to be involved in a community benefit organization that is helping the most vulnerable children in our communities,” says Mead. “The most meaningful overarching aspect of my work is our volunteers and how their commitment to the children for whom they advocate makes such a difference today and for generations to come. I tell potential volunteers that while we cannot do anything about what brought these children under the care of the courts, we can certainly make a difference in their futures.” CASA volunteers have four main responsibilities on each of their cases: 1) Investigate/assess the child’s best interests systematically and objectively; 2) Identify resources and services for the child/youth and facilitate a collaborative relationship between all parties on the case, i.e. caregivers, social workers, attorneys, doctors, teachers and others; 3) Advocate by
See CASA continued on page 7 Local Postal Customer
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Over ten years ago parishioners at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church in Danville found that Adopt a Family holiday wish lists from Monument Crisis Center clients often included a request for bikes as a means of transportation. Out of those simple requests the Adopt a Family Bikes group was born. For a couple years used bikes were donated and tires repaired by a woman who spent time during her teens working in a bike shop. Later, parent David Struck, responded to a flyer he saw at his child’s school and offered up a couple bikes. When he reached Tania H. De Young the Adopt a Family Coordinator at St. Timothy’s he asked a simple question that catapulted the program to the next level. “Who fixes the bikes when you get them?” he asked. The Adopt a Family Bikes program kept growing when David stepped in and spent countless hours cleaning, repairing, and safety checking donated bikes. Over the years the program has expanded to include a dedicated core of volunteers and expanded bike drives. The group runs under the
See Bikes continued on page 10
Volume VI - Number 12 3000F Dਁਖਉਅ Bਖ #117 Aਁਏ, CA 94507 Telephone (925) 405-6397 Fax (925) 406-0547 editor@yourmonthlypaper.com Alisa Corstorphine ~ Publisher
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