Retired after more than 40 years in the health care industry, Sharon Lowder knew she wanted to become a volunteer. Where to volunteer, though, was her most challenging question.
While reading the volunteer opportunities section in the News Tribune, a writeup for Capital City Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) caught the attention of the Jefferson City woman.
"The one that continually caught my eye and pulled at my heart strings was CASA," Lowder said.
The organization connects children in the legal system, who have been abused, neglected or found in unstable homes, with adult advocates who represent the child and the child only.
"I think you want to assure the child that you are there for them and you are here to make sure they stay in a safe environment," Lowder said. "You're looking out for what their wishes are."
Jon Beetem, Cole County Circuit judge, swore in Lowder and 11 new CASA volunteers as members of the court Monday evening. The newbies underwent a 10-week training process, which covered topics such as the inner workings of the court system, understanding different cultures, how to make reports and family service teams.
Kaitlyn Thomas, a student at Missouri University of Science and Technology, said they also learned that the parent-child connection is strong, and children who've been harmed by their parents still want to return home. Because Missouri is a reunification state, parents in question can care for their children after completing requirements set by the court.
"The ultimate goal is to reunite the children with their families," Thomas said. "That's the No. 1 goal - above everything else. No one is perfect. The main thing is to get them back with their families if that's safe."
James Kellerman, executive director of CASA, said the addition of new volunteers brings the organization's total to 50. In the first six months of 2015, he said CASA volunteers have assisted 108 children, but some of those cases carried over from the prior year. More than 225 new cases have been filed this year, and CASA is trying to reach as many as possible. The organization will hire a part-time volunteer coordinator in 2016 in the hopes of recruiting more volunteers.
"Our goal is to keep recruiting and training volunteers so we can help more and more kids," Kellerman said.
He said there is a greater need for male volunteers as the volunteer base is saturated with women. Two of the new volunteers are men, like 24-year-old Alex LeCure. He said he's always been protective of children, and can't imagine them going through the court system without a CASA volunteer by their side.
"Especially in the case of a male teenager, I think I would be able to relate to them better than a female volunteer would," LeCure said. "It's not that long ago that I was where they are, not in terms of abuse but in terms of growing up. It was 10 years ago that I was 14. There's just more room for dialogue there."
Before swearing in the CASA volunteers, Beetem spoke on the importance of CASA volunteers.
"I've been in child welfare law for almost 25 years, and I've gone home saying, "You won't believe what I saw today.' There are some really sad situations," he said. "But CASA is one of the ways we can improve the quality of the court system."