BY SANDI CARPELLO
Staff Writer
RED BANK — A nonprofit organization that advocates for the best interests of abused and neglected children is taking shape in Monmouth County.
The Court Appointed Special Advocate program (CASA), a 13-year old organization with more than 900 branches nationwide, assigns thoroughly trained and screened volunteers to research the family history of an abused or neglected child.
Based on the research, the volunteer works with the juvenile court system to determine whether that particular child should stay with his or her legal guardians, be placed in foster care, or be freed for permanent adoption.
"CASA volunteers watch over and advocate for these abused and neglected children to make sure they don’t get lost in the overburdened legal system or languish in an inappropriate group or foster home," according to CASA of Monmouth County Steering Committee member Cindi Van Brunt, of Eatontown.
"They stay with each case until it is closed and the child is placed in a safe, permanent home," Van Brun said. "For many children, the CASA volunteer will be the one constant adult presence."
In the United States more than 500,000 children are in foster care because they cannot safely live with their families, Van Brunt said.
Nearly 70,000 national CASA volunteers serve approximately 280,000 of those abused or neglected children every year, according to www.nationalcasa.org.
Research suggests that children who have been assigned CASA volunteers tend to spend less time within the foster care system than those who do not have CASA volunteers.
Although there are seven CASA programs operating out of New Jersey, including branches in Camden, Elizabeth, Morristown, Newark and Union, there are no programs that serve Monmouth County’s roughly 700 children who are in out-of-home placement, Van Brunt said.
"They were planning to establish a CASA in Monmouth County in 2001, but after September 11, they had less manpower, so they decided to put it on hold," she said.
But now, the Monmouth County branch’s seven-member steering committee, which is temporarily operating out of the Community YMCA in Red Bank, is in the process of raising the funds needed to hire a full-time director and rent an office space in closer proximity to the Monmouth County Courthouse in Freehold.
If all goes as planned, the branch will hold its first volunteer training session on Oct. 1.
Van Brunt, a former Manhattan-based businesswoman who is now a stay-at-home-mom, said her motivation to become a CASA volunteer came out of a strong need to serve her community.
"I felt like it’s been my calling — especially working with children," she said.
However, according to Van Brunt, even those who work full time are eligible to become CASA volunteers. Aside from a lengthy application process, a roughly 25-hour training program, and thorough background check, becoming a CASA volunteers only requires a 10-hour per month commitment, she said.
To become a CASA volunteer or to make a tax-deductible donation, contact Cindi Van Brunt at (732) 804-6920 or visit www.nationalcasa.org.