Our mission is to speak up for the best interests of children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse and neglect. We recruit, train and supervise community volunteers who provide a voice in court to assure each child a safe, permanent and nurturing home.
Our Vision
Our vision is that CASA of Morris and Sussex Counties will become the model program for assisting children who have been removed from their home as a result of abuse, neglect or abandonment.
The support of our community and the advocacy of our volunteers will make it possible for these children to achieve permanent, safe and nurturing homes as well as access to all of the services to which they are entitled.
Our Impact
Our volunteers have been shown to provide numerous benefits to the children we serve and the community:
- Children with a CASA volunteer are substantially less likely to spend time in long-term foster care, defined as more than 3 years in care: 13.3% for CASA cases versus 27.0% of all children in foster care.
- Out of the 354 children we served in Fiscal Year 2010-11, 108 reached permanency, which includes reunification with birth parents, adoption, kinship legal guardianship, or independent living.
- Our 178 volunteers contributed a total of 8,263 hours of service in Fiscal Year 2010-11. According to the Independent Sector, the dollar value of a New Jersey volunteer hour was determined to be $25.20 in 2009. At that rate, CASA volunteers provided $208,228 worth of volunteer service in Morris and Sussex Counties.
To learn more, read our Annual Report.