“I reached a point where I could no longer read news stories on children who were beaten, starved, or murdered without taking action.”
Court Appointed Special Advocate Suzanne Kapral has been taking action since she began her advocacy with us in November of 2018.
“My experiences growing up lead me to where I am today as a CASA volunteer,” Suzanne said. “I have seen firsthand how lack of advocacy and support for children in abusive homes can wreak havoc on innocent lives with adverse effects lasting well into adulthood. Even worse, these unlearned patterns are repeated through generations.”
Suzanne's compassionate approach to childhood trauma is one of the many things that has allowed her to be an effective advocate. Appointed to the case of a young girl, Suzanne showed consistency and kindness and tenacity in speaking up for what is in the best interest of this child. Because of that, this wonderful little girl will be adopted THIS WEEK by her very loving foster mother and Suzanne has been alongside her every step of the way.
“All children, regardless of circumstances and abilities, have value, matter, and belong,” Suzanne said. “They are not a burden. Our kids need to hear and believe that, and CASA is a way to help get them to that place (believing they are not a burden, have value, matter, and belong.”
By taking the time to learn more about CASA, attend training, and spend the time advocating for this child's best interests, Suzanne has helped change this story from fear and sadness to hope and love.
“As a CASA you will have a strong and dedicated support system to help guide you through training and advocating,” Suzanne said. “A misconception is that advocating as a CASA will become an overwhelming demand on your personal time. This is simply not true. Through CASA's support, you will learn to become incredibly efficient with time management. In as little as 10 hours a month, you can change the direction of a child's life and raise the quality of life as a collective society. Personally, I am a better person by my serving as a CASA. I have learned to quickly dismiss the 'small stuff' by thinking more 'big picture' as is relates to building a safer world for our children and our children's children.”
Our commitment to safety means that we are not currently hosting in person info sessions, we are still dedicated to sharing CASA's mission with all who wish to learn more about what advocacy looks like. If you feel like you're ready to talk to us about how you can take the next step, we encourage you to reach out to us at office@luzernecasa.org. If you're not already, we also encourage you to follow us on Facebook for the most up-to-date information regarding the program and ways to get involved.
Not only does Suzanne change lives with CASA, she does so with her work as the Director of Marketing and Development at The Lands at Hillside Farms. She is the mother of one adult son, Matthew, whom she calls a “marketing genius.” She is also the compassionate caretaker to two dogs, one parrot, and two part-time cats who show their allegiance at feeding time. Suzanne resides in the Back Mountain area of NEPA. This past March, Suzanne spoke at TEDx Scranton and shared her story “How cows and a cornfield helped heal childhood trauma,” which is available online.
