For weeks, gifts for our annual Holiday Wish Drive poured into the Passaic County CASA office. In just a few hours on a frigid Wednesday, they were handed off to our team of dedicated CASA volunteers. These CASAs will make sure the gifts make it to their intended recipients -- a child in foster care -- wherever that child may live.
Our CASAs will drive to West Milford, Paterson, and Passaic. To Clifton, Haledon, and into neighboring (and some not-so-neighboring) counties. Setting up appointments to visit, not to mention traveling there, takes time and effort, but they do this out of genuine care for “their” CASA child or children. Each one wants to do what they can to make sure they have a happy holiday.
These are the children our CASAs have spent months and often years getting to know. These are the children they advocate for, make phone calls for, visit every month, and speak for in court. In November, they found out what each child wanted or needed. Now, the week before Christmas, when to-do lists probably feel a mile long, they will find a way to get the gifts delivered.
We are sometimes asked if donors can give their gifts directly to children. We know there is nothing like seeing a child’s face light up because they’re receiving just what they asked for. Unfortunately, we have a responsibility to protect the identities of these children. The closest we can offer is this glimpse into the “hand-off” of gifts between our office and our CASA volunteers. As they each drive off with their trunk full of gifts, these CASAs have to be the next best thing to Santa. But we never forget it is the generosity of the community of donors who contribute to our annual Holiday Wish Drive who make it possible. So thank you to each and every one!