PIEDMONT CASA ANNUAL IMPACT REPORT
Fiscal Year 2023: July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023
Letter From Our Leaders
Piedmont CASA President Kate Duvall and Board of Directors Chair Crystal Shin
Dear Friends,
Did you know there’s a new country called Safe Home Land, whose national mission is to make child misery obsolete? We first met its very young founder at a local fair in Louisa County. When asked to draw what made him happy, this little boy told us about a land where all children are happy and live in homes that are safe. He even drew a flag for it - and we are flying that flag because Safe Home Land is what we try to find for every child and youth in foster care, more than 2,300 since 1995.
As we near the end of our third decade of service, we have started laying a new foundation for our fourth. After working on strategy for months, the Board of Directors adopted new Mission, Vision and Value Statements. Our prime objective is a major expansion to provide CASA Volunteers for the entire 16th District. We made our first move on July 1 of this year, when we began providing CASA services for children in Fluvanna. Over the next few years, we will also expand to Madison and Orange counties.
The second objective of our strategic plan is to ensure that equity, diversity, and inclusion are centered in every aspect of the organization. Work on this has already begun, and we will use the information and data we collect in the coming year to guide us going forward. You can read our Equitable Impact Plan here.
While laying this foundation for the future, Piedmont CASA staff and Volunteers have continued to do what they do best: support and advocate for children in foster care. Every day, they work alongside youth, families, and teams, with compassion and integrity, consistently advocating for the best interests of each and every child. In the coming years, we will work even harder to promote and implement equitable, culturally competent, and trauma-informed practices.
Your support is the bedrock of our work, and we thank you for being part of our team as we strive to ensure that every child in our community finds their Safe Home Land.
He named the country Safe Home Land and drew this flag for it
When we set up our tent at fairs and festivals, we always ask kids to "Draw what makes you happy". We tell them that we use their drawings to help tell the story of CASA kids. This little boy got all dreamy and then very serious. He told us about the country he wishes existed, a land where no children suffer. Where all kids are protected and have a family and a happy home. He named the country "Safe Home Land", and designed this flag for it.
The first time I submitted a court report, the judge acknowledged it from the bench, and I believe my recommendations helped him make decisions. From that moment on, I was hooked. When you make that kind of difference in the life of a child, you give that child hope.
Cathy Eberly
Piedmont CASA Volunteer and retired CASA Supervisor
The Kids We Served in FY23
These children, their needs and their resilience …keep me motivated and inspired. And even though CASA Volunteers are known for giving kids hope, I find the kids give me hope.
Bob Beard
Piedmont CASA Volunteer
Piedmont CASA Volunteer Highlights
Children don't ask to be in foster care. They don't ask to be separated from their family and everything they love. Knowing how hard this is for a child, courts in our community always request a Piedmont CASA Volunteer. Always.
Kate Duvall
Piedmont CASA President and CEO
Bridges Coaches meet each youth exactly where they are at and provide the resources and guidance to help them achieve their own personal goals. They know each young adult is unique and will require different information and skill building. Being there as a consistent adult who is willing to listen without judgment and who will help them problem solve through all of life's ups and downs is crucial.
Leah Cole
Piedmont CASA Program Director
Bridges to Success Highlights
Older youth in the Bridges program range in age from 13 to 20. Because they are placed all around the Commonwealth, Bridges Coaches spend a lot of time on the road, over 30,000 miles annually.
Education
- One youth is on track to graduate from high school early at age 16.
- Two youths are attending 4-year colleges
- Two youths are attending 2-year colleges
- One youth completed a CNA program (Certified Nurse Aide)
- Of the young men and women whose cases closed in FY23 when they turned 20 or 21: all had earned their high school diploma or GED equivalent.
Employment
- Youth milestones in the last three months of FY23:
- 8 obtained employment
- 15 held jobs
- 14 participated in job training or interviews
- Of the young men and women whose cases closed in FY23 when they turned 20-21: all were employed and financially independent.
His mom asked, "Is money really what makes you happy?"
He was just a kid, and she wondered how money could make him happy. He spent a long time working on his drawing, getting it just right. He was being realistic. It takes money to have food to eat and a roof over your head. A single parent can't do it on today's minimum wage. Nearly 80% of the children we serve come from homes surviving at or below the federal poverty line. As we could see from the Children's Protection Act implemented during the pandemic, a little money - $3600 or less per child per year - pulled kids out of poverty, and out of the foster care system.
As a dad myself, I was looking for a way to give back to the community and have a real impact on a child's life. Piedmont CASA has been a perfect fit.
Casey Werderman
Piedmont CASA Volunteer
Giving a family time for reunification
Court Reports are the centerpiece of a CASA Volunteer's advocacy. Last year, the courts accepted 99% of the recommendations made by our Volunteers - 407 out of 412. Here is one example:
Two young children were placed in foster care. Ten months in, the Department of Social Services (DSS) wanted to change the goal to adoption. Generally an adoption goal is not made so early in a case, particularly when the parents are working to get their children back. In her court report, the CASA Volunteer recommended that the goal remain to return home. After reviewing her detailed report, DSS asked the court to reject approval of their own plan and accept the CASA plan. The court agreed. Thanks to the diligence and advocacy of our CASA Volunteer, this family still has a chance at reunification.
Thanks to our friends, sponsors and supporters - these two events raised nearly $90,000 for Piedmont CASA!
Kid's Choice Playhouse Raffle
Designed by Bushman Dreyfus Architects, voted best playhouse by kids, and built in our front yard by Peter Johnson Builders, "The Look Out" raised over $20,000. It was also featured in C'Ville Weekly's Summer Abode magazine. For more photos of "The Look Out", including a video of the playhouse under construction, click below.
Jimmy "Magic Man" Miller's Bracket Breakfast
The Magic Man's 8th Annual Bracket Breakfast broke a lot of records this year! About 270 guests kicked off the March Madness season by raising close to $70,000 for Piedmont CASA.
We were absolutely thrilled when UVA players Kihei Clark and Jayden Gardner appeared! Even the UVA CavMan was there.
The panelists were UVA President Jim Ryan, acclaimed novelist John Grisham, Co-Host of the Greenlight Podcast Macon Gunter, managing editor of BetFTW with the USAToday Sports Group Caroline Darney, and UVA women's basketball alumna Deborah Stroman, current director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Gillings School. ESPN Bracketolgist Joe Lunardi Zoomed in with picks and insights. NBC29 Anchor Steve Rappaport and UVA Director of Broadcasting John Freeman were the emcees.
Save the Date for Bracket Breakfast 2024 on March 18!
Community Connections
The Numbers
Meet Jack
Jack has a super busy schedule, but he still finds time to come to the office with Sue now and again. When he does, he never fails to bring a smile to everyone he meets. Inspired by his dedication and good humor, we decided to make Jack an honorary member of our staff.
Arftistic Director
As arftistic director, Jack's first assignment was to curate the drawings for this annual impact report. He pulled them from our Kids4Kids Gallery, a nine-year collection of drawings donated by kids in our community to help us tell the story of CASA kids.