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67 foster children in Kern County await a Court Appointed Special Advocate

Posted at 7:21 PM, Jan 09, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-09 22:21:44-05

A total of 67 foster children in Kern County are on a waiting list to receive a Court Appointed Special Advocate.

CASA of Kern County is seeking to train volunteers to speak up for the thousands of foster youth in the system during court proceedings.

In Kern County, approximately 2,000 children and teens live in the foster care system, taken from their homes due to abuse, abandonment, or neglect. We train and support CASA volunteers, then match them with a foster child to create a one-on-one relationship, advocate for the child's best interests, and ensure his or her needs are met. In a life full of uncertainty and change, a CASA volunteer is often the only consistent, caring adult in a foster child's life. Being a CASA volunteer doesn't mean you have to be a replacement parent or a superhero. It means being someone who cares and shows up.