Free Fun Fall Activities to do With Your CASA Child (Or Any Child)

By Juliana Oelkers
CASA Marketing and Communications Intern

It’s time to break out the cozy sweaters, boots, and pumpkin spiced everything. The hot, humid days of summer are beginning to fade, quickly being replaced with brisk autumn air and falling leaves. Fall is such a fun filled time of year, yet many children in foster care cannot always partake in all of the autumn themed festivities. Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) are in a position to change this.

When CASAs make their monthly visits to see the children on their cases, there are many activities they can do together to get excited for the season, give them the opportunity to escape the daily reality of foster care, and just feel like a kid. Here are a few ideas that can help you make the most of this time of year and of time together with your CASA child!

Fruit costumes, courtesy of Pin This

1.       Make DIY Halloween Costumes with your CASA Child

This is a great way to spend time together, while also creating a costume that he or she will love. There are endless possibilities when it comes to making your own costume without spending a dime. Some of the easiest costumes include fruit. All you need is a t-shirt in the desired fruit color and some fabric markers or permanent markers to decorate with. You can draw the seeds for fruits like strawberries and watermelons, circles to represent grapes, or lines for a pumpkin.

“Smarty Pants” costume, courtesy of Mommy Lessons 101

They can use old clothes they already have at home to make a costume, or come to CASA to pick up supplies. Do they have a jersey from their favorite team laying around? Just add sneakers and eye black to make the perfect Derek Jeter, Tom Brady, or Hope Solo costume. Other clothes such as an old sweater, white tube socks, and slippers can be paired with a cane and dusting of baby powder in their hair to turn you CASA child into a cute old lady or man.

For those kids who are class clowns, there are a number of DIY pun costumes that are guaranteed to be a hit. A black shirt with color copies of postage stamps pasted all over will make your CASA child “blackmail.” Glue candy Smarties to an old pair of jeans to be a “smarty pants.” If you have a basketball jersey, all you need to do is tape a cardboard doughnut (that you and your child decorated) onto the jersey to become “Dunkin Donuts.” With a little creativity your CASA child can be anything they want to this Halloween.

2.       Decorate a Paper Pumpkin

It doesn’t feel like fall has arrived until children decorate their own pumpkin. For a free option, stop by the CASA office and get some orange construction paper, markers, and/or paint. Children can cut out and decorate a pumpkin of their very own, making it scary, silly, or just plain fun.

3.       Discuss Favorite Halloween-themed Movies and Music

If your CASA child is a movie fan, ask them about their favorite scary (but not too scary) movies. Coco, Hotel Transylvania 3, Coraline, and Goosebumps are just a few they may like. Older children and youth may have seen The Addams Family, The Nightmare Before Christmas or Hocus Pocus. Do they know the words to oldie-but-goodie hits like Monster Mash, Thriller, or Witchy Woman?

Leaf coloring, courtesy of First Palette

4.       Color with Leaves

Kids who love to color, draw, paint, or be artistic will love this activity. All you need to do is collect some leaves outside with your CASA child and place them under a piece of paper. Then, using crayons, color over it and the pattern of the leaves will be revealed on the paper. You can use all different types of leaves and colors to create beautiful works of art that are perfect for fall. It is one of the most simple, yet entertaining things you can do with your CASA child this fall.

Every kid deserves to have fun during special holidays. As a CASA, you have the power to give your child a fantastic fall and create memories with them that will last a lifetime. 

Passaic County CASA honors Paterson advocates for children, raises more than $200,000 at Voices for Children Gala

On Friday, Sept. 20, Passaic County CASA celebrated a night of child advocacy at the organization’s annual Voices for Children Gala at the Preakness Hills Country Club in Wayne. During the evening, Passaic County CASA raised a record-breaking $219,000, which will serve to lift the voices of children in the foster care system by providing each a dedicated volunteer advocate. 

The event kicked off with a cocktail hour and continued with a plated dinner, a “Lift Up a Child’s Voice” program, music by Daddy Pop, and lots of dancing. Voices for Children Honoree and former foster parent Karen Walker brought attendees to their feet following an impassioned speech about how she and her husband, the late Charles Walker, tirelessly advocated on behalf of children in foster care. The Walkers were foster parents for 26 children and adopted four children. Charles volunteered as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for five years and served nine children.

During the “Lift Up a Child’s Voice” portion of the evening, attendees were surprised when an anonymous donor pledged a $100,000 match. Master of ceremonies Duncan Schieb led the way as the number climbed and reached $100,000.

"This was an amazing collaborative effort on the part of staff, board, donors, and supporters who came together to lift up the voices of our most vulnerable children,” said Executive Director Erica Fischer-Kaslander. 

View more photos from the 2019 Voices for Children Gala here.

The Power of Tenacity and Consistency: Volunteer Spotlight on Lisa Ingersoll

“It is rewarding to be able to say I changed a child’s life for the better. It is the best feeling in the world.” This is how Passaic County CASA’s October 2019 Volunteer of the Month Lisa Ingersoll summarizes her experience serving as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for two boys in foster care.

Prior to meeting Lisa, the two boys were removed from home because of their parents’ struggles with drug addiction. From there they were placed in the homes of an aunt and a cousin, followed by two successive foster homes, and ultimately with their older half-sister. By the time Lisa met the brothers, the older boy had been enrolled in five different schools over the course of one year, which seriously affected his academic progress. Throughout second grade he struggled to keep up and his teachers began to talk about holding him back.  

Thankfully, Lisa was able to jump into action. She campaigned for him to get an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and additional classroom support. She also pushed for him to receive tutoring over the summer in his weakest subject: math. As a result, he was able to continue on to third grade alongside his peers.

Throughout this time, the boys transitioned through six different Division of Child Protection and Permanency caseworkers. Lisa was able to be a consistent advocate for the boys, together with their older half-sister, who has filed paperwork to officially adopt them. Lisa is looking forward to attending their adoption ceremony later this year. She also looks forward to taking on a new case and being able to make a difference in another child’s life.

Lisa’s path to becoming a Court Appointed Special Advocate was far from direct. This busy mother of three from Upper Montclair juggled family life and a 20-year career in marketing at a New York ad agency. When the demands of both home and work grew too much, she left her job in the city. Unsure about what to do next, she saw an ad for the then brand-new Montclair Film Festival and volunteered her marketing expertise. Over time, as the Festival grew, she assumed a staff role as Co-Director of Marketing. This left a void in terms of volunteering, which Lisa believes is important to do as much as possible. A friend told her about CASA, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Being a CASA isn’t always easy, Lisa admits, and it requires tenacity to do the job effectively. But having worked for twenty years in the challenging New York marketing field, tenacity is a skill she developed long ago. Lisa loves being able to see firsthand the impact she’s made. Plus, Lisa said, “When I go to visit the boys and they run to greet me, it is so wonderful. There’s nothing like it.”

The CASA Difference: Malcolm and Beverly

When Malcolm* was born, he weighed 4 lbs., and tested positive for cocaine. Premature, underweight, and going through withdrawal, Malcom went right from the hospital to a foster home.  He was assigned a CASA named Beverly, who visited Malcom at his new home with his foster parents. During Malcom’s first year Beverly watched him grow and overcome the struggles he was born with.  She observed a loving family who expressed interest in potentially adopting Malcolm. Over time, extended family was found and Malcolm was moved to live with them.

A few months later, the Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P) received an anonymous phone call alleging neglect on the part of the relative foster parents. As a result, Malcolm was moved to a temporary foster home. Beverly visited Malcolm in the new home and returned to the court to advocate that he return to this original placement where he had thrived. In less than 3 years, Malcolm has lived in 3 homes and Beverly was the only consistent face.

Beverly was able to support the family's appeal to the judge that Malcolm be returned to them. Thanks in part to Beverly's observations and genuine concern for Malcolm's best interest, the family court judge agreed to return Malcolm, and he was adopted a year and a half later.

Are you interested in making a difference of your own in the life of a Passaic County child? Click here to learn more about volunteering or here to make a donation to support the work of CASA volunteers like Beverly!

The Catch-22 of Children and Domestic Violence

By Jessica Mickley
Director of Outreach and Training

In New Jersey, every 7 minutes, a person is a victim of domestic violence. That means every 7 minutes, a man or woman is physically, emotionally, or sexually abused by an intimate partner. However, many victims do not report the abuse to police, so domestic violence actually occurs more frequently than statistics show. A culture of silence and shame prevails when it comes to domestic violence, making October’s Domestic Violence Awareness Month incredibly important. 

When the person you love and trust most in the world starts trying to control where you go and who you talk to, it can feel embarrassing to tell anyone. When those controlling behaviors become threats, and then threats escalate to pushing, shoving, slapping and other physical acts, it can feel impossible to seek help. 

Victims of domestic violence often do not report the abuse because they love the perpetrator. This may seem shocking (how could you love someone who hurts you?) but it’s important to remember: abusive behavior does not start on day one of a relationship. Most of the time, abusive behavior begins slowly, almost imperceptibly, and then increases over time.

Those who have experienced domestic violence may not report because of these reasons:

·         The very real fear of being blamed for the abuse

·         A poor prosecution rate with minimal jail time for the perpetrator 

·         Fear of the repercussions

·         Threats of violence from the abuser if the victim reports

And then there’s the one reason expressed by many victims: their children.

Abusers often use children as a control tactic. This control takes many forms. Sometimes, it is threats to kidnap the children, or sometimes it’s threats to make false claims about child abuse. When it comes to domestic violence, children are often pawns in a very dirty game of chess.

Unfortunately, victims of domestic violence are in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation when it comes to their children. The above threats are very serious, and abusers will follow through if provoked, making it dangerous to leave the relationship. In fact, the most dangerous time for a victim of domestic violence is right after he/she leaves the abuser.

However, if a victim of domestic violence stays in an abusive relationship, the children will inevitably hear or see some of the abuse at a minimum. Children who witness domestic violence are often traumatized, and have statistically been shown to be at higher risk to become either an abuser or a victim themselves later in life.

In domestic violence situations, children are always at risk.

Fortunately, there are many organizations that help both victims and their children find safety. If you or someone you know needs help, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. If you are in an immediate risk of harm, do not hesitate to call 911 or report a child at risk to the state central registry (877-NJ-ABUSE).

To learn more about services for victims of domestic violence in Passaic County, visit http://www.passaiccountywomenscenter.org/.