Voices For Children trains volunteers to be Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) who work with guardian ad litem attorneys to advocate for the best interests of, and provide direct services to, child victims of abuse and neglect in Boulder County.

CASAs "Visit the children, try to bond with them and get a sense of their situation," said Ahrendt. A CASA is ". . . basically an advocate for the child. We talk about how the children are feeling, determine what services they need, and attend parent visitations to report on how the parents are doing." "I like to find summer camps for the children for free or on scholarship," Ahrendt added.

A retired teacher, Ahrendt ". . . has been volunteering with Voices For Children as a CASA for two and a half years. In that time she has worked on two cases providing services to five children," according to Pam Pullen, Volunteer Coordinator for Voices For Children.

Ahrendt estimates that she spends 15 to 20 hours per month volunteering. "Exactly what you do and how much time you spend depends on the case you're assigned, if you have more than one case at a time, and how many children you have," she said.

Pullen points out that "In addition to her CASA work, Ahrendt is also a Table Captain for our annual fundraiser, the Light of Hope luncheon."

Ahrendt loves "Giving a lot of these children a person they can feel comfortable with--a person they can talk to." "You really feel like you make a difference in the lives of these children and their families. It's highly rewarding. You can do so much to help the children, their family, and the caseworkers," she said.

Ahrendt did caution that volunteering as a CASA "can be very emotional . . . not all cases end how you'd want. You need to be careful not to get too involved emotionally."

For information about volunteering with Voices For Children or other agencies, call the Volunteer Connection at 303-444-4904, or go to our Volunteer Central.