WHEREAS, All children have the right to a home with loving people to care for them, but each year in the United States, children are abused, neglected, or abandoned by their families. These children are removed from their homes, placed in foster care or institutions, and eventually end up in court; and

WHEREAS, A judge has the power to decide the future for these children and whether they should remain in foster care, be reunited with parents, or adopted, but in many cases, the children become victims for a second time, lost in an overburdened child welfare system that cannot pay close attention to each child; and

WHEREAS, CASA Appreciation Day recognizes the important role played by Court Appointed Special Advocate for children (CASA) volunteers. These trained community volunteers are appointed by a judge as officers of the court to speak up for children in juvenile court and to help humanize the often frightening and confusing child welfare and legal systems for these children; and

WHEREAS, Eighty thousand of California’s children are in foster care because they have been abused, neglected, or abandoned. CASA volunteers play an important role in their lives by getting to know a foster care child and letting the judge and others in the child welfare system know about the child’s perspective and needs; and

WHEREAS, The CASA mission is to ensure consistency and support for children in the foster care system through the use of volunteer advocates advancing the best interests of each child; and

WHEREAS, The CASA vision is one where every child in need is appointed a CASA volunteer to champion him or her in court, without compromise, on the path to a safe and permanent home; now, therefore, be it