BOBBY ARDOIN Editor/Consulting Writer
There have been times when Madelyn Rosette admittedly has cried and prayed during her 13 years as a CASA representative.
No telling how many tragic situations Rosette has seen during her time working child advocacy cases which now include St. Landry and Evangeline parishes.
Rosette, the executive director for the two-parish CASA network, told the Opelousas Noon Rotary Club on Tuesday that St. Landry and Evangeline contain a large number of impoverished families.
Many of those situations normally lead to home situations that most would consider less than ideal, Rosette pointed out.
“It’s very serious and there is always the likelihood that there will be opportunities for children to experience lives that lead to other problems which become serious. It’s a community problem, not just a family problem,” Rosette explained to the Rotarians.
Unfortunately, Rosette said, in some cases children are also being exposed in each parish to deviant behaviors either from parents, close family members or even siblings, making their cases even more difficult to comprehend.
Rosette estimates that there are about 140 active child advocacy cases in Evangeline and St. Landry.
Many of the facts from each case are presented to judges who often rely on court-appointed child volunteer advocates approved by non-profit CASA organizations who act as “voices” for children who are considered abused and neglected.
The volunteers, said Rosette, act as representatives for the children as their cases are moved through the court system.
Rosette explained that CASA volunteers are considered the eyes and ears of the court system and provide supplemental documentation and reports to child welfare workers for foster care and adoptive situations.
CASA volunteers and supervisors additionally make home visitations in order to clarify a home situation and decide whether children are safe in that environment, said Rosette.
Confidentiality is paramount among volunteers, Rosette pointed out.
Moving children from their biological homes and into foster care is not an easy process, Rosette said.
However there are occasions where Rosette has seen children display a unique persistence to changes in their home lives.
Rosette described one experience with the Rotarians where a CASA case involved a child that had been navigated among 30 homes.
“That child was so resilient and made it to LSU where she was an honor student. That child was in our system twice,” said Rosette.
Rosette said that as a youth, she shared some of the experiences that she now sees among the children living in St. Landry and Evangeline.
Help for that situation came from a family member, Rosette added.
“The fire that is inside me came from a praying grandmother who helped me,” said Rosette.
CASA, which stands for court-appointed special advocate, is always in need of volunteers, since there is a waiting list of children whose cases are ready to process.
However volunteer advocacy is achieved only through a vetting process that includes local, state and national training sessions, Rosette said.
Operational expenses for CASA are generated primarily through grant funding in addition to donations from organizations like the noon Rotary Club which presented Rosette with a $4,000 check on Tuesday.
Rosette emphasized that CASA undergoes strict fiscal auditing from the State Police and State Supreme Court.
