1. How long have you been a CASA volunteer?
I’ve been a CASA since November of 2012.
2. What brought you to apply to become a CASA volunteer?
I retired from public school teaching after 38 years and wanted to keep on helping kids. Becoming a CASA was actually at the top of my to-do-in-retirement list.
3. Besides being a CASA volunteer, what do you like to do in your spare time?
I love to read, work in my yard, take care of my dog and, most importantly, keep up-to-date with my 5-month-old granddaughter who lives in Virginia.
4. What do you love the most about being a CASA?
I really love knowing that the CASA program makes a difference in kids’ lives. I enjoy the research, learning things about various laws and processes, and getting into the details of a particular child’s development. Every child is so unique, but there is the commonality of needing to be loved and supported by “family” – however that ends up being defined for them.
5. What’s a hidden talent or unusual fact that most people don’t know about you?
It might not be that hidden or unusual, but I received a Lilly Teacher Creativity Fellowship in 1995. I attended years of summer workshops through the Extending Teacher Creativity program which transformed my teaching as well as expanding my commitment to helping kids. They began and ended each summer workshop with the phrase “you do the most important job on the face of the earth”. Very inspiring!