Family Court Judge Catherine Rice Holderfield swore in ten new Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers Monday morning in her courtroom on the 3rd floor of the Warren County Justice Center.

CASA of South Central Kentucky is a non-profit agency that advocates for the best interests of abused, neglected, and dependent children who have been introduced into the Family Court systems around the region. CASA recruits and trains concerned citizens to volunteer and independently work in the court system to serve as the child’s advocate and court representative.

Established in 1999, CASA of South Central Kentucky served 236 abused, neglected, and dependent children around the region in 2018-19. Typically, the children have been removed from their parents and placed in foster care due to no fault of their own. The ten new volunteers, who recently completed 30 hours of training on such topics as family law, child trauma, culture, and communicating with children and families, will join the CASA team of 71 advocates who volunteer their time to work with the children who find themselves in need of a voice in the courtroom.

“These volunteers bring a variety of backgrounds and a diverse perspective to the cases they will be taking on,” states Executive Director Jana Sublett. “We are excited to be adding10 new volunteers who represent 4 of the 10 counties in the South Central KY region to our roster, however, the need for advocates is still great. We were only able to serve 18% of the children with neglect, abuse, and dependency cases in our region in 2018-19.” Along with Warren County, the South Central Kentucky program receives referrals from Family Court systems in Barren, Metcalfe, and Hart counties.

The number of children in need continues to rise each year. The Kentucky Administrative Office of the Court (AOC) reported 1,284 cases of neglect, abuse, and dependency in the CASA service region in 2018-19. For community involved citizens who wish to be the voice for a child within the court, you can find out more about the program’s mission on their website – www.casaofsck.org. Applications for the next training beginning in February 8, 2020 can be found on the site at www.casaofsck.org/volunteer, or for more information, contact Advocate Development Specialist, Steve Jones – 270.782.5353.