Voices For Children

Recognized: 11-10-2018

Sector: Community & Faith-Based Organizations

Voices for Children is a private, nonprofit organization that has recruited, trained, and supervised thousands of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) who advocate for the rights and well-being of children who pass through foster care in San Diego County, since 1980. Voices for Children has transformed the lives of abused children through volunteer CASAs.

The mission of a CASA is to help clear a path for a child out of the complex and overburdened child welfare system and into a safe, permanent home. A CASA volunteer serves as a fact finder for the judge by thoroughly researching the background of the assigned case and gathering additional and ongoing information about the case as it develops. He or she also speaks on behalf of the child in the courtroom—advocating for the child’s best interests—and acts as an overseer for the child for the duration of the case.

As the only agency designated by the courts to provide CASA volunteers, Voices for Children has a strategic vision called Serve Every Child. Since 2006, the organization has worked towards an ambitious goal of providing a CASA to every foster child who needs one. The goal of serving approximately 3,400 children in San Diego County is within reach.

Voices for Children believes that every child deserves a safe and permanent home.