CASA advocate Jackie T. was given a case whose success would come to mean a new lease on life for four children.
The family Jackie worked with consisted of four children, all Russian-born. Because of consistent physical and verbal abuse, the children were placed into foster care. The children’s case was made public with DYFS and the Court when one of the boy’s fraternal twins passed away. It was found that the cause of death was due to head trauma, reportedly at the hands of the mother. The foster mother is still incarcerated for this crime, as is the adoptive father and grandmother for murder conspiracy.
Jackie threw herself into the children’s case, determined to make positive changes for them. The children were placed into two separate resource homes in different counties; one of Jackie’s first goals was to get the children back together. Her plan was to arrange out of district education to keep the children together. Jackie became involved in the lives of each of the children, forming individualized plans including therapy and the retrieval of birth certification.
While the changes Jackie was making for the children were for the better, one of the little girls had a difficult time adjusting to her resource home. She was then placed in a special therapeutic resource home for better care. For weeks, Jackie drove 60 miles every weekend to make sure that the girl was adjusting properly.
Because of Jackie, the boys are set to be adopted into a caring and loving home. The younger daughter continues to receive treatment and has been moved into a permanent home under Kinship Legal Guardianship (KLG). The eldest daughter, 18, is beginning to make college plans with Jackie’s help. Jackie plans to make sure she receives assistance until she turns 21.
Because of CASA advocate Jackie, these children were given a chance at happy, healthy lives. She has been the one person that has been there constantly, going to every meeting and a handful of other events, even the children’s birthday parties. It’s because of dedicated advocates like Jackie that the lives of children everywhere are being changed for the better. Stay tuned for more success stories from children and advocates this month!