CASA Blog

Film Review: “The Florida Project” This special movie handles complex social and economic realities with balance and subtlety. It is summer vacation for kids who live in a cheap hotel a few miles from Disney World. There is irony in the disparity of those two worlds that eventually suggests escape. Moonie, the 6 year old main character, leads her friends on many adventures that on the surface appear like kids being kids, but from another perspective, are the result of challenged...

Self Care The work we do as CASA Advocates can take a toll on our emotional well-being. Working with families and kids who have experienced trauma can lead an Advocate to experiencing compassion fatigue. It is important to dedicate time to ourselves, and address our emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual needs. Here are some ideas for Self Care: Physical Self Care Drink plenty of water. Exercise. Stretch. Get a massage. Dance, swim, walk, run, or do some kind of fun physical activity. Get enough sleep. Take a bubble...

In 2011, the National CASA Association launched the I am for the child campaign.  The campaign was designed as a catalyst to strengthen the CASA mission that every abused and neglected child have a volunteer Court Appointed Special Advocate by their side.  Therein lies my motivation as an advocate when the task seems daunting. 10 Ways in which I am for the child: I am the “one constant” in the child’s life, assisting with all transitions until the child achieves permanency. I fight diligently for the child’s right...

Sadly, statistics confirm a psychiatric admission for a child in the foster care system is far from an unusual occurrence. Mariela Herrera, MD, Medical Director of Youth Inpatient Psychiatric Unit at Billings Clinic, is on the front lines. “A child’s relationship with a parent is crucial to his or her sense of self, trust, and safety. Initial separation from a caregiver can be extremely traumatic to a child, and each subsequent move adds another layer of trauma,” she indicates. “Mental health...

For as long as we’ve existed, CASA of Yellowstone County has struggled to adequately serve the Native American children in our local foster care system. At CASA we believe that all children deserve to have a voice, and that this voice is most effective when it comes from within the child’s culture. Unfortunately, we have never been able to provide every Native American child we serve with a Court Appointed Special Advocate who comes from a similar cultural background. The overrepresentation of...