CASA of Luzerne County Year in Review

Dear Friends,

As we approach the end of another challenging year, I am filled with gratitude for all those who have given generously of themselves- as volunteers, as donors, as partners- to help children who have experienced abuse or neglect in our community. We are thankful for you and greatly appreciate your support of our mission.

The holiday season should be a time to make happy memories with family. But it can be a difficult time for the more than 500 children in Luzerne County who have experienced abuse or neglect.

That is a heavy burden for a child to carry alone. On any given day this holiday season, 58 volunteers in Luzerne County are showing up for 70 children, helping them find hope for a brighter future. In 2022, CASA of Luzerne County volunteers provided a voice to 101 children, 51 children with a CASA volunteer achieved permanency with over 50% of those returning safely to their home of origin, 16 new volunteer advocates were sworn in and matched with children needing advocacy and the CASA volunteers gave approximately 12,120 hours of advocacy to children in Luzerne County.

We at CASA of Luzerne County are determined to make sure that every child in our county who has experienced abuse or neglect has the opportunity to thrive in a safe and loving home. But we can’t do this alone. Your generous support makes our work on behalf of these children and youth possible.

Please help us reach more children by making a gift today or becoming a volunteer advocate. Every gift, no matter the size, will have an impact. Together we can help a child thrive.

Sincerely.

Mary Kay Pivovarnik

Executive Director

CASA of Luzerne County

What's Happening at CASA of Luzerne County? July-September 2022

CASA of Luzerne County had a busy and productive summer. Here are some highlights. We hope to see you at one of our upcoming events or in an information session!

Action in Advocacy!

Our CASA advocates have been moving our youth to safe and stable permanency.

We are in need of some additional advocates to help us advocate for the children in the Luzerne County dependency court system who desperately need a voice. There are multiple information sessions scheduled both in person and virtually and our next training session will begin on March 7th 2023. If you have been considering becoming an advocate there is no time like the present. We have information sessions scheduled for November 7, December 2nd, December 12th, December 21st, January 11th and January 24th with more to follow in February. Please visit our website at luzernecasa.org for more information or call the office at 570-855-2247.

PA Judge’s Conference

Our Executive Director had the honor of presenting at the Pennsylvania Conference of State Trial Judges in Hershey, PA.

Mary Kay, along with the Executive Directors of CASA of Philadelphia County and CASA of Alleghany County and a representative from PA CASA spoke to Judges in Pennsylvania about the importance of having a CASA program in their county. PA CASA is working to ensure that every county in Pennsylvania has a CASA program and Luzerne County is honored to be a part of spreading that message.

CASA in the Community

CASA of Luzerne County hosted PA CASA and a group of CASA Executive Directors from across the region who are all a part of the Trauma Informed Advocacy Pilot supported by a grant from the AllOne Foundation. We spent the day discussing the exciting advancements in volunteer advocacy and the benefit to the children we serve. We were also able to take a moment to be mindful and learn some techniques from Mara Morell, co-owner of Mrida Seva Yoga & Holistic Wellness in Berwick.

The Mercy Foundation has provided CASA of Luzerne County with a grant to bring our youth resiliency programing through art and writing. We held our first two sessions in August. The first session was in conjunction with the Independent Living Group at Luzerne County CYS. We discussed poetry and rap music and the way writing can be a healthy expression of feelings. NEPA Street Art Society joined us for the second session. Our youth visited a muralist who was in the process of painting a mural in Forty Fort. The youth and advocates were able ask him questions about his process and how when he is told “No”, how he is able to start again until he gets a “Yes”. The youth then went to the nearby park and created art based on the mural they saw. Look forward to much more regarding this program and all of the interesting people our youth is meeting along this journey.

The Crestwood Key Club gave CASA of Luzerne County a donation of books for children of all ages for the CASAclubhouse as well as a monetary donation that went into the Annie Ellis Fund for resiliency activities for our youth. Thank you to these special kids who care about the children in our community!

The Pittston Walmart provided our youth with a generous donation of back to school supplies. The youth were able to come into the CASAclubhouse for a shopping experience for supplies, clothing from our CASA Closet as well as books from our library. The employees at the Pittston Walmart were an incredible help making sure we got what we needed and that we were able to get it all into our vehicle! We love our community partners.

Grief Camp at the Lands at Hillside Farms hosted CASA week at camp. 19 of our children were supported through a week of processing trauma, using healthy coping skills and building resiliency. Thank you to the staff at Hillside Farms led by Suzanne Kapral, the CASA staff and the CASA advocates who volunteered their time for the week. The children had a beautiful butterfly release that culminated a week of fun and hard work. It is a humbling experience to be a part of such a lovely program. We can’t wait to be a part of it again next year.

Getting the word out about CASA…..

CASA of Luzerne County had many opportunities to get the word out about our mission this summer. We were the “Community Organization of the Game” at a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Rail Riders game in August. Mary Kay was given the opportunity to throw out the first pitch and CASA also used this opportunity as an Advocate Appreciation Event. Many of our CASA volunteers came out to the game with their families and everyone had a great time.

We also had a table at the Luzerne County Cares Community Expo. We had the opportunity to talk to many of our community partners and shed light on on all of the work our advocates do to help the youth we serve move forward in a healthy and happy way.

CASA had a table at the first hole of the Brandon’s Forever Home Golf Tournament. We were able to spread the word of advocacy and the understanding that it truly does take a village to support some of our most vulnerable youth.

The Downtown Artistic Forum invited us to speak to members of the arts community about our Art and Writing program and get the word out that we are looking for volunteers to give an hour of their time to give our youth experiences that will lead to better coping skills and a better understanding of what our community has to offer them.

Penn State Wilkes-Barre invited CASA to speak to students about advocacy for the child welfare system and internship opportunities at CASA of Luzerne County. We left the group feeling energized by their interest, care and concern for children in the dependency court system.

Successes!

Susquehanna Brewing Company was the site of our July fundraiser for Shop with a Cop. We had a “CASA Hawaiian Holiday” theme. So many community businesses provided us with basket raffle items and gift cards. It was a wonderful celebration in preparation for our collaboration with the Pennsylvania State Police and the city of Pittston for this years Shop with a Cop event for our youth. We raised $1500 for gifts for our children. We had a beautiful evening with our wonderful supporters.

CASAblanca 2022

The Luzerne County Courthouse was the backdrop for this years CASAblanca Gala on September 22, 2022. The most magnificent location for our most successful fundraiser to date. M&T Bank was once again our Hero of Hope sponsor and they led the way for so many other community sponsors to make this an unforgettable event to support our advocates and the youth of CASA of Luzerne County. Our tireless CASAblanca Committee led by Ruth Corcoran and Lake Gemzik created a magical evening reminiscent of Rick’s café in Morocco with beautiful piano music filling the room played by the talented Christine Leandri. CASA of Luzerne County is thankful for everyone who sponsored, donated to and attended our event. Our advocates and our mission were well supported on that beautiful night.

Upcoming Events

To finish out the year CASA of Luzerne County will be participating in Giving Tuesday on November 29, 2022. Giving Tuesday is a wonderful way to give to our mission at a time we are feeling most thankful for all we have. Please keep an eye on our Facebook page and website for more information on Giving Tuesday. Every bit donated goes into supporting the volunteer advocates who give a voice to our children in the dependency court system in Luzerne County. Thank you for choosing us!

Wrapping up…….

CASA of Luzerne County continues to recruit, train and support volunteer child advocates to give a voice and a future story to the children in the Luzerne County Court System. Please call if you are interested in becoming an advocate or joining one of our committees that support our organization. Call 570-855-2247 or email office@luzernecasa.org and we will contact you.

Thank you for your ongoing support and interest in CASA of Luzerne County.