CASA Connection // October 2019 // Bi-Monthly E-Newsletter

CASA Volunteers Help Get the Child Up and Going!

Dear , 

Our Heart of Missouri CASA volunteers are many times the only constant adult in the lives of our local children in the foster care system. We hear many stories of impact and thought you might enjoy hearing this as well.

Robert* had been advocating for a young boy, James*, for over a year. James had recently relocated to a new home. He had been trying to learn to ride a bike before he was moved to the new home. Unfortunately, James didn't have a bicycle at his new home to keep learning. Robert was able to find a bike for James and offered to meet him at a nearby church parking lot, where he was able to teach James how to ride his new bike. James' broad grin and laughter as he mastered bike-riding brought joy to Robert, reminding him how important his role as a CASA volunteer can be to the child. (*name changed)

CIRCLE OUR CHILDREN 

Do you spend $25 a month on coffee at that shop around the corner, ? Probably. How about $25 getting your hair cut? Easily.

What if you knew that $25 a month could help a foster child move back to their home sooner? What if you knew that your gift of just $25 a month could bring enhanced child development training to our CASA volunteers? Did you realize that a gift as little as $25 a month supports 12 hours of child advocacy for someone in need in Boone and Callaway Counties!

We have just rolled out Circle of Hope, our monthly giving society.

We need you to join the circle, . Our goal is 25 new monthly recurring donors in the next year - will you be one of the first, ?

By eliminating the need for processing checks and cutting down on our direct mail expenses, the Circle of Hope wraps our children in a "circle" of loyal and supportive members. Help us grow the number of CASA volunteers today by a minimum gift of only $25 a month!

Becoming a CASA Circle of Hope Donor means strong and steady timely funding that can allow us here at Heart of Missouri CASA to deliver lasting volunteer impact to foster children in need here in Boone and Callaway County. Help us reach our goal of 25 new Circle of Hope members, !

New Board Members

We welcomed two new board members to our team in August! Learn about them here:

Andy Bonderer is an engineer and President/CEO of Professional Contractors and Engineers, a general construction company in Columbia, Missouri.  He believes in supporting his community and has demonstrated this by serving and volunteering on various professional, civic and non-for-profit organizations, including the Fulton Public Schools Board of Education. He is married to Stacey and they have 2 daughters.  He enjoys hiking, hunting and working on his farm.

Chris Horn is a Reinsurance Manager at Shelter Insurance here in Columbia. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri where he competed on the track team. His most recent service has been as a Board Member of The Intersection and as an Advisory Council Member of The Inclusive Impact Institute. Chris was a recent graduate of the 2019 Class of Leadership Columbia with the Columbia Chamber of Commerce. Chris enjoys basketball in his leisure time, as well as time with his wife and 3 children.

Ready for football season?!

, if you're a fan of The Kansas City Chiefs and plan to attend a game or two this year, why not support Heart of Missouri CASA with your ticket purchase! Use the link below, enter the promo code "HOMCASA", and we'll receive $10 for every ticket purchased.

Click here to get your tickets today!! 

New Volunteer Training is HAPPENING NOW!

We'd love to talk with you about participating in our Winter 2020 training! The Fall 2019 class is going on right now and has 9 advocate candidates in it! We need 20 new volunteers to join the next class. Please share with family and friends!

Winter 2020 New CASA Volunteer Training dates:

1/16/2020:    5:30 pm – 6:30 pm
1/23/2020:    5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
1/30/2020:    5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
2/06/2020:    5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
2/13/2020:    5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
2/20/2020:    5:30 pm – 8:30 pm

*New volunteer training is 30 hours, 15 in-person and 15 online. Classes are held at the Columbia CASA office. Online work is completed in between the in-person classes. 

Watch this --> Encouragement from 5 CASA volunteers to become an Advocate!