CASA tapped for $100K grant

Court Appointed Special Advocates of Southwest Missouri was chosen for a $100,000 federal grant.

The funds provided through the national CASA organization are earmarked for recruitment, training and the assignment of new volunteers to represent youth who have experienced abuse or neglect, according to a news release. It's designed to help older youth who are aging out of foster care.

"In 2019, we served 17% more older youth in foster care and we want to build on that increase. With this grant, our goal is to ensure that youth are not exiting foster care without a caring, consistent adult in their life," said Laura Farmer, executive director of the Springfield CASA chapter, in the release. "Every youth deserves an adult in their life who is there for them, no matter what.”

The funds distributed through the National Court Appointed Special Advocate/Guardian ad Litem Association for Children are made available by the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The National CASA/GAL last year received nearly $7 million in federal grants.

CASA volunteers advocate for the needs of at-risk children and also mentor them, according to the release.