Making a Difference
INVESTING
IN OUR
CHILDREN
Volunteer Awarded
for Advocacy
C
ASA Bruce Meyer stood in
front of fellow child advocates
this July and shared,
“Everyone in this room makes
a difference and if I — if we —
inspire our neighbors, our neighborhoods,
our communities to make a difference.
Well, then we are on to something!”
That day, Bruce accepted the “Community
Advocate” award from the San Diego
County Juvenile Justice Commission for
his work as a Court Appointed Special
Advocate (CASA) volunteer. Through Voices
for Children, Bruce has been matched with
four youth over the past four years.
During his time as a CASA, Bruce has
learned that youth in foster care or the
juvenile justice system often “see themselves
as a statistic.” However, he says, “Once
the youth trust you, they will believe you
when you tell them how great they are, how
valuable they are.”
Bruce is one of more than 1,300
volunteers who advocated on behalf of
youth in San Diego County last year. The
role of a CASA has two key objectives: get
to know the child or youth to understand
his or her needs, worries, hopes, and
dreams, and use that information to
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advocate for the child’s best interest to the judge making decisions on the case. Through
reports they submit to the court, CASAs have the opportunity to profoundly impact a
child’s future. In fact, because of the care and attention afforded to each case, the court
accepts 85 percent of the recommendations made by Voices for Children’s CASAs.
Bruce says, “My goal when I became a CASA was to make a difference in one life, just
one.” Not only has he accomplished that goal, but he has inspired those around him to
invest in the lives of children — the future of our community.
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