CASA Newsletter - February 2007
CASA Newsletter - February 2007 Staff members celebrating at the CASA Night of Jazz in December
CASA's Work is Essential
by Linda A. Osmundson Executive Director, CASA
Sometimes when you’ve been working for battered women and children for many years, as I have, you forget how essential CASA’s work is to the very lives of survivors of domestic violence and their children. The donations CASA received this holiday from the community for our emergency fund allows us to help families struggling to survive. Last week I used the fund to purchase emergency bus tickets for a woman and her children to flee to her mother’s house in another state. Maria Henderson, CASA’s Shelter Coordinator, sent me a follow-up email afterwards. Maria describes the last day at the shelter for the woman we helped, “She also called her mom, who she had been calling “mama” while she was with us. Just before she left though, she said to her mom, “Mommie, I’m scared.” I guess that just about said it all.” I am saddened that women are still so afraid. I remember when we thought domestic violence was so insignificant that we did not count how many were affected. (Depending on which study you believe, domestic violence happens to one in three women up to one in ten. In either case if one in ten women were affected by a disease in this country it would be called an epidemic.) I can remember a time when police could not make arrests in most domestic cases. We changed the law. I remember a time when police did not write up reports when they were dispatched to domestics because they were so uncomfortable intervening in private family matters. I rejoice that today domestic violence is no longer private. Women find out about CASA’s services through dedicated community professionals like the social worker and Sheriff’s Deputy Martin who recently urged a woman to call CASA. When the woman called, she commented to her new CASA advocate, “I just knew I would find help here,” because of the concern the social worker and the sheriff expressed for her safety. Commonly we hear complaints that law enforcement and social services didn’t even ask about domestic violence. I am heartened to know that is changing. Trustee, Mike Gilson, said his company had chosen to give food donations to CASA. When some of his colleagues found out how involved Mike has been with CASA, they whispered to him their own horrific stories of violence at home. Mike said he never guessed that domestic violence had personally affected two professional women, with whom he had worked closely. When he conveyed the story to me, his eyes welled up with tears and we hugged. A few weeks ago I attended a lovely church service at King of Peace Metropolitan Community Church. I was presented an enormous check for $20,500 that had been had raised for CASA. I have boundless gratitude for an unexpectedly large donation. CASA staff, volunteers, donors, Board Members, Trustees, vendors, professional colleagues, collaborating organizations and a host of others in the community care enough to support CASA with their finances and time. Our holidays were rich with gifts from the largess of our growing CASA community of volunteers and donors. Thanks to your incredible generosity, we were able to help113 families with holiday gifts. For some families, this was the best holiday in many years because they were able to enjoy smiles on the faces of the children. For all it was overwhelming to think that so many people in the community cared enough to share with women and children…and a few men, too, that left everything for a little peace and safety. Saying thank you is never enough. I will say it anyway! THANK YOU! Ten Dollars Well Spent!
by Amy Harcar Volunteer Coordinator
Often the amount of the donation cannot come near the size of the gift. The following story is a good example. This past holiday season, a group of donors made it possible for each family of children in our transitional housing program to have ten dollars. The children were given the money to spend on their moms. Why not just give the money to their moms? One of the first things that volunteers and staff working with the children at CASA learn is the importance of choices. Coming from homes where there were very few choices, the children in CASA programs grow in countless ways as they begin to feel safe and able to make choices for themselves. The holidays were the perfect time to give the children an opportunity for choice. CASA Youth Advocates took the children on a special shopping trip to a very busy dollar store. The following interaction between a staff person and one little boy is a powerful testament to the value of choice. In the checkout line, I looked down at one little boy’s shopping basket and noticed that he had aluminum foil, saran wrap, various cleaning products and a mop. I said to him, “Wow! Those are some practical gifts.” He replied, “My mom wouldn’t like all those other silly things.” The smile on his face reminded me that those cleaning products would be really special to a mom who had a place to call her own for the first time. How wonderful that her son knew exactly what would make her happy! Cleaning might not be something most of us generally think of as a “joy” but for the women in our transitional housing program, the simplest tasks have incredible meaning in a place of their own. Even what may seem like a small gift of ten dollars or two hours a week of volunteering with the children at CASA has an impact on lives in ways we cannot even begin to measure. If you are interested in volunteering at CASA, Volunteer Orientation/Open House is held the second Thursday of every month from 6-7:30 p.m. Please register 727.895.4912 ext. 107 or
Reflections on 30 years of CASA As CASA moves into its 30th year, we will be featuring regular contributions on CASA’s past by Judy Lambdon who has worked at CASA for 22 years. CASA staff and volunteers have always been a resourceful group. Because we had to, we learned how to reach out to the community for help when our resources came to an end. I remember times when board members would go door to door in their neighborhood and collect towels and sheets for the Shelter. I also remember budgets so tight that food and shelter were our only focus. Donations of food, diapers and the basics were few and far between. Over the holidays, I had the opportunity to reflect on how far we’ve come, thanks to a generous community that has supported us since the beginning in 1977. This Christmas was a joy to behold. The residents had a wrapping party on Christmas Eve to wrap the presents donated to their children. Everyone enjoyed Christmas dinner the next day! We are still frugal and practical (old habits die hard), but, thanks to the community, holidays at CASA are wonderful, food is plentiful, and we no longer have summers without deodorant. Serving hundreds of survivors and their children each year takes a lot of stuff, and there are times when we have to cut back or do without, but being able to provide bus tickets to move a family to safety is what it is all about.
Maybe someday funds will be available to assist many more in living a life free of violence; in any event I will continue to do all I can to assist survivors and their children.
