Meet Laura, our Distant Placement Liaison

For those of you who do not know me, I am Laura, the Distant Placement Liaison for Passaic County CASA. As the Distant Placement Liaison, I travel around the state to visit children in foster care who are originally from Passaic County but have been, for various reasons, placed in care outside of Passaic County. Sometimes the children I visit are one county over, sometimes they are as far as the Jersey Shore!

The children I advocate for are a diverse group. They are anywhere from 11 months to 20 years old. Some are placed with relatives, others are in group homes or facilities. They are from all backgrounds and races, from black, white, Hispanic, and mixed race. Some are now living in cities, others in rural areas of the state where bear warnings are the norm.

In December, I make sure that every child in distant placement receives Holiday gifts—I get to play Santa, thanks to the kindness and generosity of our Passaic County CASA Holiday Wish-list donors. The Holiday Wish-list donations are especially important, as while some children have been placed with family members and may receive gifts from their family, many of the children I visit do not. In many instances, the gifts the CASA program provides are the only gifts these children will receive at all, not just during the Holiday Season but for birthdays too. It means so much to them to open gifts that were selected just for them, whether it be Nike sneakers, or art supplies, or electronics—when they receive a gift that they really, really wanted, they know somebody cared. So to everyone who donated to our Holiday Wish-list program, Thank You for making the children I visit feel cared for, it means a lot to me and it means everything to them.

Now that we are in a New Year, many people will have made New Year’s resolutions, maybe to eat healthier, or to exercise more, or maybe to cut down on social media—whatever they might be, the goal is always improvement. I have my own personal list of resolutions that I hope will make me a better, healthier, smarter, happier person and I can’t wait! I also like to encourage my CASA children to consider any path of improvement, so this year I will be listening closer to them and encouraging them to exercise more wherever it is appropriate and accessible. Older kids might enjoy dance, gymnastics, a basketball or volleyball league, while younger kids might enjoy swimming lessons that provide a break from the cold weather and prepare them for the summer. After encouraging one family to consider swimming lessons for their seven-year-old grandson, I now receive regular videos of him swimming across the pool, and he loves it! 

Not everyone will be open to suggestion, but sometimes a nudge is all it takes. How about you? What will you choose to improve this year? If you haven’t decided yet, I suggest coming to our Open House in February and meeting the CASA team, or registering for a Volunteer Information Session, and taking the first step on a path to not only improving yourself, but improving the lives of children in care, by becoming a CASA like me!

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Passaic County CASA Open House

Passaic County CASA is extending an open invite to drop in, meet the team, and see where all the action happens. Join Passaic County CASA for a glass of wine and a slice of cake, and enjoy an informal conversation with Volunteer Advocates and the extended team!

Mark your calendars for Thursday February 9th, visit any time between 5:30—7:30pm, at 415 Hamburg Turnpike, Suite D2, Wayne, NJ07470.

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Recruiting New Advocates

If you haven't made your New Year's Resolutions yet, Passaic County CASA can help! We are actively looking for more people to volunteer as an Advocate, so if you have the resolve, we have many children who desperately need someone to be their CASA and to speak for them—someone like you!

Our next Volunteer Information Session is on Saturday February 11th at 10am in the Passaic County CASA offices, 415 Hamburg Turnpike, Suite D2, Wayne, NJ07470.

If you are interested in attending an Information Session click on the first button for our calendar of upcoming sessions, or the second to register today!

Be a CASA- I am

-By A CASA Volunteer

I am a CASA, a Court Appointed Special Advocate, and I advocate for abused and neglected children in the foster care system. I am you. I am not an attorney or a social worker or a therapist. I am just someone who cares about children and thinks that a little common sense goes a long way. 

I have time. I have stability in my own life. I have flexibility in my job. I am able to communicate well with others. I am passionate about seeing children thrive and reach their potential. 

Like you, I was looking to volunteer and stumbled across CASA. I am grateful for that. In CASA I have found a rewarding opportunity to work with children who are in need while experiencing a trying and difficult time in their lives. The system is challenging for everyone involved, but the support of the CASA staff has made the experience one that I have enjoyed and continue look forward to spending my time on. I have made great friends with fellow CASA volunteers, caseworkers and CASA staff over the years I have been a CASA advocate. 

Many times, I have thought, "this is it, I'm going to stop volunteering after________." Then I realize if I don't continue, one less child will have a voice and the fleeting thought is gone. For that same reason, if you don't step up and become a volunteer, make the commitment, complete training, find the time, and dedicate yourself, one less child will have the voice needed to find the safe and permanent home they deserve. 

Passaic County has over 350 children in foster care each year. Each and every child deserves to have their voice heard and have a consistent caring adult by their side. With your help we can achieve this. 

As a CASA volunteer, you visit the child you are assigned at least once a month and get to know that child. You interview all the parties involved in the child’s case – teachers, doctors, foster parents, therapists, social workers – and write a report based on the information you collect. Don’t worry. You get all the training you need to be able to do this correctly. You are also assigned an Advocacy Supervisor from the staff who will supervise and guide you throughout the whole time you are assigned to your child. Most volunteers find this takes in total about 10-15 hours per month.

As a CASA, your main objective is to act in the best interest of the child at all times. You become the eyes and ears for the judge. Your main concern is not why your child is in the foster care system, but what information the court needs to know to make decisions on behalf of your child and what services need to be provided – a permanent place to live, therapy for special-needs kids, tutoring in school, ect. – so that your child can thrive and have a stable environment.

So if you have the time, the compassion, the dedication, the common sense, the flexibility, the stability, then we have the volunteer opportunity for you! 

Click here to sign up for one of our upcoming convenient information sessions on a Saturday morning or an evening  

CASA Welcomes Two New Board Members

Passaic County Court Appointed Special Advocates welcomed Dr. Gerard Costa and Mr. Al Kahwaty as new members to the organization’s Board of Trustees in November of 2022.

Dr. Gerard Costa’s resume boasts decades of experience in early childhood mental health and infant/toddler development while Al Kahwaty brings excellence in filmmaking, journalism, and the nonprofit sector.  They are strong additions to this Wayne-based child advocacy organization.

Passaic County Court Appointed Advocates (CASA) champions the best interests of abused and neglected children who are living in the foster care system. Through a triad of complimentary, yet distinct, programs Passaic County CASA ensures that each child in the child welfare system has the opportunity to thrive in a safe and permanent home. 

Dr. Costa joined the Passaic County CASA board after a storied career in the field of early childhood mental health. Dr. Costa was the founding director of the Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental and is a Professor in the Department of Family Sciences and Human Development at Montclair State University. He has served as a consultant to the national organization, ZERO TO THREE for the past 20+ years and is one of the first 16 “Expert Faculty” selected by ZERO TO THREE in the new DC: 0-5 (2016) Classification system. Since 2018 he has served as the Coordinator of the Northeast Regional Terrorism and Disaster Coalition. Most recently, Dr. Costa served as the Principal Investigator of the New Jersey Inclusive Education Technical Assistance (NJIETA) project, an $8 Million, 5-½ year project advancing full inclusion in New Jersey Public Schools.

“As the organization has grown, I have been honored to support Passaic County CASA’s newly launched New Jersey Safe Babies Court Team in a variety of ways, and now joining the board will continue to elevate this work which I wholeheartedly believe in.” Costa said. 

Al Kahwaty

Mr. Kahwaty spent a large part of his career producing long-form television news at shows such as 60 Minutes and Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. He now owns his own New Jersey based production company, Kahwaty Media. Mr. Kahwaty has also served many years as a Little Falls Council member and as the chairman of the Passaic County Film Commission.
Mr. Kahwaty’s involvement with Passaic County CASA began when he produced a video for the recent 2022 Storybook Gala.    While working on that video, his passion for the organization and the children CASA serves became evident. “I have been honored to help share the stories of CASA volunteer advocates and the children they serve through film and look forward to building on that as a board member.” said Kahwaty.

Founded in 2007, Passaic County CASA has experienced significant growth over the past decade, serving more than 400 child victims of abuse and neglect during the last year through a triad of distinct, yet complimentary programs.

For more information about Passaic County CASA, including how you can become a CASA volunteer, attend an upcoming information session or e-mail training@passaiccountycasa.org

Why an “impersonal” gift card could be the most personal gift you give this year

By Michelle Schaefer
Director Of Strategy And Impact

As we rush around, shopping for family and friends during the holidays, we often struggle to figure out the right gift for each of our loved ones. The wish to bring joy to others, paired with a lack of good gift ideas, adds to our stress during this busy time of year. Despite the challenge of finding the perfect gift, we tend to think of gift cards as “giving up.” Or that gift cards mean “I just don’t know you well enough to know what you like, or I didn’t have time to shop, so I got you a gift card to pick out your own gift.” It can cause us to feel guilt that we should have tried harder, should have brainstormed more, should have shopped longer. We therefore tend to perceive gift cards as impersonal gifts.

For older youth in foster care, however, receiving gift cards provides a unique opportunity for the youth to shop for themselves and to choose things that truly represent their personal style - their likes and dislikes.

Choice is a luxury that children in foster care rarely experience. So many life altering decisions are outside of their control – which foster family they live with, whether their foster home will change, how frequently they can visit with their birth parents, to name a few. Even when it comes to basic essentials, foster children often don’t get a say. Many youth receive hand-me-down clothing – things that may show signs of wear, may not fit in the most flattering way, or may not last as long as they would hope. When they do receive new items, the new clothing is often provided all at once, based on a requested size, but the purchaser of the clothing doesn’t really know the child’s favorite colors or style preferences. The gift of choice is exceptional for these youth.

For a youth in foster care, a gift card means they can purchase that pink, sequined shirt that they saw in a window display, jeans that fit perfectly and make them feel their best, those red Nike sneakers that they’ve been dreaming of, or a new dress for the party that they’ve been invited to. A gift card to an athletic store or an expensive, stylish clothing boutique lets them buy brand-name sneakers or clothing. This can help foster youth feel proud, confident, and more at ease around friends and peers. A gift card to Target or Amazon might let that youth buy the specific hair or skin care products that they prefer. A Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts gift card helps them indulge during an outing with friends.

Each year, prior to the holiday season, CASAs in Passaic County meet with their CASA children and ask the kids to provide lists of their holiday wishes. Then we share those wish lists with our generous donors, who help to fulfill them. Overwhelmingly, our older youth ask for gift cards and relish the opportunity to shop for themselves. And yet, ironically, donors tend to prefer to give specific items as gifts, rather than gift cards, because of the notion that gift cards are impersonal.

For youth in foster care, though, that “impersonal” gift card gives the rare opportunity to choose gifts that really are personal. So if you’re wondering how to make this holiday season sparkle for a youth in foster care, please consider a gift card donation to Passaic County CASA, and know that the gift card recipient will be overjoyed to receive the gift of choice.

Meet our 2022 Champion for Children Honoree!

At Passaic County CASA, we believe deeply in advocating for the best interests of children in the child welfare system. Fifteen years of service doesn’t just happen without committed supporters to sustain us and help us grow. When I think back to how we started and reflect on where we are today – I’m overwhelmed with gratitude. 

My mind swirls with wonderful memories of dedicated people and amazing teams who have lifted us throughout the years. I could go on for days…even longer. Many went above and beyond providing game-changing support for our CASA children and helping us expand our scope. 

I am so thrilled for the opportunity to highlight the exceptional support from one funder, in particular. The Turrell Fund, an organization serving the youngest and their families, has been a grantor of Passaic County CASA since the early days when we didn’t have enough advocates to serve every child in foster care. Today, we serve every child in need, and now, we can offer even more meaningful resources thanks, in large part, to Turrell. 

Over the years, Turrell has been a constant support source of advocacy statewide. They have defined what it means to be a true partner. In fact, it was their grantmaking that enabled the launch of the Safe Babies Court Team, our newest program and the first-of-its-kind in New Jersey. 

If you ask my team, they would tell you I have pretty lofty goals… but even I thought this idea was beyond reach at one time. But Evan Delgado, President of Programs at Turrell, believed in us… he believed in the strength of our team to keep our core programs operating at the highest level, while expanding our impact. It was Evan and the Turrell Fund that encouraged us to bring this Zero to Three program to New Jersey and lead the Safe Babies Court Team across three New Jersey counties.

His encouragement didn’t end there. Evan and the entire Turrell team went all in to help us achieve the seemingly unreachable goal. They spent endless hours on video calls… phone, calls and in person to help us apply for an extremely large federal grant… with only 10 days' notice. To be clear, this was a tall order for even the most experienced grant writing teams. Typically, writing a federal grant would take months. Somehow, we did it…we turned in the application...we landed the grant. We are now in the privileged position of offering a new stabilizing force for families and caretakers of young children. 

What’s next for us? Only time will tell. One thing we know for sure – with partners like Turrell, we can not only change lives for the better – but we can reach even more children in need. To the team at Turrell, we thank you for your commitment to children and the vision to create new paths to better outcomes for all families.  

Champions for Children

The Turrell Fund: Serving the youngest and their families.