Manifesto of a CASA Executive Director

Every day I walk into my office thinking of our children. The children we serve. But mostly the children we are not serving.

The pain and suffering they are experiencing right now. How these awful experiences will affect their future, and the future of their children.

I also think about how their abuse and neglect will affect our community, our economy, our public services, our public planning and budgets, our local economic and community development. The issues we discuss and read in the paper about, like homelessness, drug abuse, domestic violence, unemployment, early deaths, emergency room cases. The issues that we have become accustomed to discussing, ignoring or being outraged about.

It also pains me to see that our children’s suffering has been stolen by politicians. How considering options to help our children can separate us, and make it difficult, if not impossible, to agree on what to do for them.

I also think about how we are failing our children as a society. We have been incapable of organizing ourselves well enough to protect them from abuse, or help them heal properly from it. Instead, we have chosen to leave them behind, and make them invisible.

This is the work to be done. Every one of us has a role to play. When we come to work, we have to bring it all. Our creativity, drive, determination, and commitment to them.