A Year in Review

As we look forward to 2022, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on 2021. This past year has been a year of great change for CASA of Luzerne County.

A change in leadership and staffing has brought me to the Executive Director position, serving a population of youth I am very passionate about in my county of origin. I could not be more grateful to be working in an organization that has such a solid and respected footprint in the community, giving a voice to the children in the dependency court system in Luzerne County. The staff , the volunteer advocates and the Board of Directors are the most mission driven group I could hope to work with.

Despite the adversity the community has experienced due to the pandemic CASA of Luzerne County has been able to accomplish amazing things by making adjustments to a more virtual world. The leadership and staff at CASA of Luzerne County understood that child welfare cases don’t push pause for any reason and the children continued to need advocates to represent them.

CASA of Luzerne County virtually trained and swore in 16 new advocates in 2021, currently has 54 active advocates who are representing 79 children in the child dependency system of Luzerne County.

CASA of Luzerne County provides best-interest advocacy for children as reflected in the guiding principles which recognize the importance of family preservation and reunification, equity, diversity, inclusion and collaboration. As a result of the advocacy provided this year, 22 children in our program received permanency; of those 22 children 12 were reunified with their parent or caregiver.

CASA of Luzerne County will continue to dedicate ourselves to the mission of recruiting, training, and supporting community volunteers to serve as the voice of abused and neglected children in the Luzerne County dependency court system so that these children will be safe, secure and given the opportunity to thrive.

Our goals for 2022 are to expand our reach of recruiting advocates to areas of Luzerne County that are underrepresented and further educate the citizens of Luzerne County on the importance of advocating for the children in their communities. Recruit CASA’s for the children who are currently on our waiting list and in need of a voice. And continue to work with the amazing community partners who support CASA of Luzerne County and expand and grow those roots with new partners.

Please consider making a monetary donation to CASA of Luzerne County so we can continue to our mission to give a voice to the 550 children currently in the Luzerne County dependency court system.

Or become a volunteer CASA advocate and be that voice. There is no other volunteer experience that gives so much to a child in your community and gives you so much back in return.

Sincerely,

Mary Kay Pivovarnik

Executive Director

CASA of Luzerne County

The new normal: Our collective stress is nothing new for foster kids

Shock, denial, disbelief, confusion, difficulty concentrating, anxiety, fear … these are all symptoms of trauma.

If you've never dealt with stress, anxiety, and grief on a regular basis before, you're likely very familiar with it now.

This COVID-19 pandemic has changed the very fabric of our daily lives. Normal is not a thing anymore. Things are both ever-changing and overwhelmingly stagnant. We don't know what tomorrow will bring, and some days we almost dread what awaits us when the sun rises.

This feeling, this all-consuming, life-changing feeling, is common for many children in foster care...every day.

Not knowing when they can return home. Not knowing if they'll see their own families again. Not knowing how long this will last. Not knowing when they'll see their friends or teachers or when they'll get a hug from someone who cares about them.

It's hard enough for us as adults with support systems. Imagine what this feels like to children without them.

This is part of the reason why a CASA is so important. When a child's life is turned upside down through no fault of their own, it's traumatic. They need someone to help them through that trauma. Someone to explain to them that what happened to them was not their fault and that now they have an adult – an advocate – who isn't going anywhere. They have someone to help make sure their needs are being met and their present turmoil doesn't have to be their future life.

There are currently more than 500 children in foster care in Luzerne County because of abuse and neglect. We currently have volunteer advocates speaking up for the best interests of 74 of those children.

But there are still hundreds more.

Once this pandemic has passed, we'll return to life as normal. We'll be back in the gym, in restaurants with our friends, at the movies with our families. Eventually the panic and fear will subside and we'll sink back into that comfortable security most of us had before this started.

Those children who are waiting for an advocate will likely not have that same luxury.

This is why it's important for our community to continue to come together. From advocates, to donors, to those who share our mission with others, we are all working together to strengthen the foundation of our community and stop cycles of trauma before they continue to new generations.

If you'd like to talk to us about becoming an advocate, you can reach out to us here. If you'd like to be donor, you can donate online here or participate in the 501cFree virtual fundraiser here. If you'd like to share the need for CASA with others, you can follow us on Facebook here.