Georgia CASA Volunteers’ Happy Returns
There is no substitute for taking the time to find the right stories to demonstrate the value Georgia Casa volunteers (called “Casas”) bring to the children in state care whom they serve and the value that work brings to the lives of the volunteer. In 2018 and 2019, Good Thinking’s editorial and creative team met four of these volunteers and used video and music to let their stories evoke powerful emotions and convince others to sign up and become Casas.
We visited these four in their homes, in their communities, inside the courthouses where they advocated for the children they represent. We met their family members, friends, and members of their community. We met appreciative Juvenile Court Judges and DFCS workers. We visited disadvantaged communities stricken by poverty that too frequently leads to the plague of abuse, addiction, and neglect that leads to family separation. We took the time to see their work in the context of their lives, documented all we saw, then returned to edit hours of video into two short films.
Shot and edited by Neil Fried and Dave Timko with interview support by Matt Porter, the films introduce you Olga Phillips (Canton, GA), Cindy Evers (Tifton, GA), Felicia Tillman (Atlanta, GA), and Jeff Sprinkle (Clayton, GA). These four would not say they are extraordinary; instead, they believe their need to give back is an obligation that is connected to their faith and personal history. However, they will say being as CASA has led to extraordinary change in the lives of the children and families they have served and has led to personal growth that has benefits their families, communities, and work. For all them, the act of giving has brought them many happy returns.
About CASA
“Each year, thousands of children in Georgia who have experienced abuse or neglect are placed in foster care. They live in our communities and neighborhoods. She may be the quiet girl in your son’s class, who had to move homes and change schools three times in the last year. He may be the lonely child at the park who never joins the game. These children should be treated with dignity and respect — not merely survive. They deserve the chance to live in a safe and permanent home when reunification with their parents isn’t likely. Georgia CASA helps ensure that a qualified, compassionate adult — a CASA volunteer — will bring a sense of urgency to these children’s needs – by amplifying their voices – and improve their experiences in foster care.”
Want to become a Georgia CASA volunteer? Go to their website: https://www.gacasa.org
