Macon Magazine

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2023 | maconmagazine.com 77 when I'm not seeing a way to be motivated forward. Ms. Joyce has been doing that for me since day one." Operating in the Central Georgia area for 25 years this November, Central Georgia CASA has provided volunteer support for over 2,500 children in Bibb, Peach, and Crawford Counties. Today, 122 children in foster care are actively being represented by CASA volunteers. Executive Director Susanna Patterson spoke to her pride in CASA's impact. "CASA provides best-interest advocacy for kids in foster care," Patterson said. "In the life of that individual child, we make a tremendous impact on their permanency, so ultimately which family they end up with, but also in the services they receive in foster care to address all the trauma they have experienced. In the life of that one child or family, the CASA makes a tremendous impact. But the collective impact of all of those CASA volunteers on all of those children and families over the 25-year history of our organization and into the future, is tremendous. Not only on those families but on our community as a whole." Like Snead, over 50 everyday heroes are actively volunteering with Central Georgia CASA. Ranging from lawyers and nurses to insurance agents and teachers, volunteers are what empower the organization to maintain a consistent impact that decision makers like Judge Young have come to rely upon. "It is a national organization that really makes a difference in our community," Young said. "The volunteers are invested in these cases. Their voices are heard in their courtroom. They come and present just as good as any attorney and even on a deeper level because they have connected with the child." CASA VOLUNTEER VOICES "I first encountered CASA when I worked with DFCS," said attorney and CASA volunteer George Dekle III. "I saw from the attorney's side that the movers and shakers on a case, the people that kids count on, are actually the CASA volunteers. A few years later, when I joined the staff at Mercer Law School, I had the time to volunteer for CASA myself and have been ever since. I am grateful that when I have my monthly visitation with the foster children I represent, Mercer allows me some schedule flexibility so I can visit when it is best for the family they are with. They have been very supportive of me volunteering." "I found CASA through an online search," said volunteer Pat Solomon. "I love children. My first case, the child was a baby, only nine days old. Now he's 18 months old and walking. It is a blessing to see him in a loving foster family. We are the voices for the children; some can't even speak at all." "I encountered CASA many years ago when I was a teacher," said volunteer Billie Abbot. "Later, I saw an ad in the paper calling for volunteers, and I said, 'Okay God, I get the message!'" Since then, Billie has represented infants, teenagers, and children over the years. "So many of these children have been through so much trauma. They need as much stability as they can get. One of the things I strive for with all of my cases is to be that constant person that is there for them." "I found CASA through an online search for a volunteer opportunity that involved helping kids," said volunteer Claire Helm. "The reason I went into CASA is because I know that, for so many kids, the trajectory of their lives is contingent on the environment they grow up in. I don't want anyone to grow up in the pain or struggles that come along with an abusive or dysfunctional home. I wanted to do what I could to help children have a better outcome in their lives as adults. To be happy, healthy, and functioning, just for themselves. To be whole people." And while many kids in foster care are receiving the individualized attention of CASA volunteers, the need for LEFT: SUSANNA PATTERSON, JOYCE SNEAD, GEORGE DEKLE III, JUDGE CHÉFERRE YOUNG, PAT SOLOMON, CLAIRE HELM, AND BILLIE ABBOT. MY JOB IS NOT TO MAKE THEM WHO I THINK THEY SHOULD BE, BUT BRING OUT THE BEST THAT IS WITHIN THEM FOR THEMSELVES." — JOYCE SNEAD "

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