Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of McKean County and the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work will co-sponsor a free training event for the community.

The event will feature a keynote presentation by Dr. Nancy McCabe, recently retired professor of writing and director of Creative and Professional Writing at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford.

The presentation, titled “The Healing Power of Writing,” will take place May 29 in Room 138 Blaisdell Hall on the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford campus.

Refreshments and networking start at 5 p.m., and the training will run from 5:30 to 8 p.m. The event is free, and attendees will receive a free journal. CEUs totaling 2.5 units will be available.

Studies show that the act of writing can function as a kind of self-care that can even be profoundly therapeutic, lowering blood pressure, strengthening the immune system and aiding in coping and healing. This workshop will focus on best practices, techniques, processes and mindsets that we can use ourselves and in our work with others who wish to write for health benefits. It will include interactive exercises and discussions as we experiment with freewriting, revising and developing writing. The most effective ways to give feedback to those engaging in this kind of writing will be discussed.

McCabe has taught for 40 years at six different colleges and universities.

She has taught writing and healing courses and workshops for a number of organizations, including the Creative Nonfiction Foundation, the national organization Craft Talks, and Spalding University. McCabe has published nine books (some exploring these concepts through personal experience), with a 10th forthcoming, “Creating Some Measure of Beauty: The Healing Power of the Artful Essay,” from the University of New Mexico Press.

“We were looking for a training opportunity for our volunteers and decided to expand the opportunity to the community.

I am looking forward to this training. It will be an incredible asset I expect to use in my personal life,” said Suzy Meyer-Page, executive director of CASA of McKean County. CASA of McKean County trains community volunteers to advocate for the needs of abused and neglected children in the foster care system. The CASA volunteer gathers information on the child/ren that is put into a court report with best interest recommendations for the judge assigned to the case. The CASA volunteer works to find a permanent home for the children they work with as soon as possible, guaranteeing better outcomes

for the children. For more information, contact Meyer-Page, smeyer-page@mckeancountypa. gov or (814) 568-2170. RSVP to Becky Koza at bjkoza@mckeancountypa. gov. You can also learn more about CASA of McKean County at casamckean.org.