April is one of the biggest months of the year for CASA as we join with all CASA offices and other agencies around the nation to promote Child Abuse Prevention Month. You will see many events, promotional campaigns, special messaging, and other efforts as we put a spotlight on the need for people to take a stand against the senseless abuse suffered by children right here in Central Texas every single day. CASA of Bell and Coryell Counties is proud to partner with local DFPS offices, the Childrens Advocacy Center of Central Texas(CACCT), Foster Love Bell County, and many other local causes that all serve these children in their time of greatest need.
Child Abuse Prevention Month sounds like a promotional concept that is meant for “somebody else”. It is easy to think “I’ve never abused a child so it can’t be that big of an issue”, but I assure you that it is. We live in one of the highest incident areas in the state of Texas with the most cases of abuse or neglect reported. We think it cannot be as prevalent here as it is in the big cities like Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, or El Paso – but the numbers reported by DFPS each year prove it is a fact of life right here in Bell and Coryell Counties. Nearly 1,500 children are in DFPS or foster care right now in Central Texas.
That is why agencies like CASA, the CACCT, and Garden of Hope and so many others need your help to stop the plight in our area. Become a CASA advocate, support programming for the CACCT, learn how to become foster parents at GOH or Foster Love Bell County. We do have many great resources in this area – we just need more people to take an interest and help stop the abuse. Get involved, donate, volunteer, or just share information to make others aware during the month of April. You could be saving the life of a child and making an impact that can change their life forever.
April also happens to be Volunteer Appreciation Month and we plan to recognize and thank all CASA volunteers this coming month for the amazing work they do with CASA kids. April 18th is set for our Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon at the Bell County Museum in Belton. We plan to feature many of our outstanding advocates during the month. National Volunteer Week is April 21-27 and CASA will acknowledge all of our advocates during that week with special recognition in a variety of ways. Stay tuned for much more information, but we look forward to featuring some great stories created by the advocacy work that our volunteers have done here in Central Texas.
CASA is a special organization thanks to its volunteer advocates. We are always looking for more people to accept the challenge of becoming an advocate for the children we serve. April is the perfect month to get involved – child abuse and neglect is not a “somewhere else” issue or “someone else’s” problem – it is right here in our backyard. Become part of the solution today by learning more at www.casabellcoryell.org.
-Kevin Kyle