Board members of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of McKean County invite the public to their annual meeting Tuesday, when a celebration of the organization’s 10th anniversary will take place.
The event will begin with a complimentary breakfast buffet at 7:45 a.m., followed by the meeting at 8 o’clock at The Bradford Club. Members of the 2013 Leadership McKean group will be in attendance to share the presentation they did at the conclusion of their Leadership McKean experience, which was the catalyst for the initiation of CASA of McKean County.
In addition, Suzy Meyer-Page, executive director of CASA of McKean County, will report on the year’s accomplishments and financial status for the program. Board President Bob Esch will speak to the community about the organization’s mission and vision.
Additional 2023 board members are Katy Pude, Julie Cleland, Christy Graham, Patsy Arrowsmith, Lindsay Burns, Chris Clifford, the Rev. Stacey Fussell, Christy Sullivan, Mike Ward and Jim Wiseman.
Advocate Supervisor Peggy Luck will recognize the volunteers who provided advocacy during 2023. These individuals include Kimberli Clifford of Olean, N.Y.; Kerri Dach of Bradford; Bonnie Fuller of Kane; Jean Luciano of Bradford; Leda Lyon of Smethport; Tim Lyon of Smethport; Beth A. Price of Bradford; Jean Stratton of Smethport; Jennifer Tanner of Smethport; Jo Wolfe of Kane; Debra Yohe of Bradford; and Jim Young of Port Allegany.
The Court Appointed Special Advocates program was established in McKean County in 2014 and connects trained volunteer community members with children who have been abused and neglected and need someone to advocate for their best interests in the court system. Since children in placement often have many human-service and child-welfare professionals involved in their lives, having a CASA volunteer who focuses only on them gives them much-needed consistency.
Since the inception of the program, 59 volunteers have served 113 children, 67 of which have been successfully placed in permanent homes.
Those planning to attend the annual meeting are asked to RSVP as soon as possible to Becky Koza at bjkoza@mckeancountypa.org or by phone at (814) 568-2170.
