CASA of Freestone & Limestone Counties, a nonprofit that recruits, trains and supports community volunteers, known as Court Appointed Special Advocates® (CASA), to advocate for children in the foster care system and their families, has been accepted by Texas CASA as the 73rd CASA program in the State of Texas.
“We have been working since March to bring this program to fruition,” said Tony Adkins, founding Board President of the organization.” For the past three years, Freestone & Limestone Counties have been served by Voices for Children CASA of Brazos County. “Earlier this year, Voices for Children asked us to consider becoming a stand-alone program, and we formed a 17-member Steering Committee to conduct a needs assessment and to make application to Texas and National CASA to retain the program in our communities,” Adkins added.
The founding Board of Directors include Adkins from Fairfield as President, Kelly Toney of Wortham as 1st VP, Wayne Williams of Teague as 2nd VP, Christina Mims of Teague as Secretary, and Taylor Rocheleau of Mexia as Treasurer. The remaining members are Erica Carroll of Mexia, Cynthia Gage of Streetman, Olivia Hays of Teague, and Spring Johnson of Wortham.
Linda Timmerman of Streetman chaired the Steering Committee and has been appointed by the Board as Interim Executive Director. “It is an honor to work with this Board and the communities in the Bi-Stone area to assure this program continues to grow and improve,” said Timmerman.
In May of 2022, the Bi-Stone counties had 57 children in CPS custody according to Timmerman. “We were serving only a small fraction of those children due to lack of volunteers and supervisors,” she stated. “Our goal is to get the program back on track, and we need the help of the communities to serve 100% of those children.” Adkins stated. Adkins, Timmerman, and Cynthia Gage have all volunteered as CASAs with Voices for Children, and Spring Johnson served on the VFC Board of Directors. “We understand how much these children and their families need this CASA program,” said Johnson.
CASA volunteers are specially trained and appointed by judges to advocate for a child or sibling group while they are in the foster care system. They advocate for the child in court, school and other settings; and they get to know everyone involved in the child’s life, including their parents, foster parents, teachers, doctors, family members and others.
CASA volunteers advocate first and foremost for children to be reunified with their parents whenever safe and possible. When reunification is not an option, they may advocate for the child to live with another relative or family friend. They can also advocate for the child to be placed in an adoptive home. In all cases, CASA volunteers are steadfast, consistent presences for the children they serve, making sure they are safe and have the resources and connections they need to grow and thrive.
The Bi-Stone CASA program is currently accepting applications for the permanent Executive Director position. To access the job description and application, visit https://texascasa.org/careers/.
The organization is also seeking volunteers. The next training programs are scheduled for late October and mid-November. For information on how to volunteer, visit https://texascasa.org/become-a-casa/ or contact a Board Member or Linda Timmerman, timmerlinda@gmail.com or 903-654-8249.
