Happy Holidays!
The past year has flown by here at CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties. It has been filled with many changes, advances, and inspirations. Here at CASA, our goal is to provide a CASA Volunteer Advocate to every child in need and last year we served over 500 children of the 1,100 in need of a CASA. It is through the ongoing support and dedication of our avid supporters, volunteers, board, team members, and community that has allowed us to make a real difference in the lives of the children we serve.
Words simply do not express my sincerest appreciation for all that you do to support CASA and our mission.
On behalf of the Board of Directors and Staff of Adams & Broomfield Counties, Happy Holidays and Best Wishes!
Lindsay Lierman
Executive Director
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CASA Child Success Story
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| | CASA Volunteer Advocate, Kevin Houck, with Former CASA Youth, Amy. |
At two and three years old, Amy and Tim Carter had endured more than their fair share of trauma before finding permanency and happiness. They were put into foster care due to domestic violence at home, but after Tim suffered a traumatic head injury in a foster home and Amy was diagnosed with Reactive Detachment Disorder, the future was confusing, unsafe, and seemingly hopeless for the two. They wanted reunification and they wanted a permanent, loving family. Kevin Houck, CASA Volunteer Advocate, helped make that come true.
For Dwayne and Jennifer Carter, their adoption of Amy and Tim was a story of fate and faith. "I never read the paper, but I happened to read the Denver Post front-page article one day about Timmy getting hurt in foster care," Jennifer said. "We had just turned away two prospective adoptive children when Adams County called about Amy and Tim." READ MORE
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CASA Presents...A Day with Santa
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Members of the CASA Staff dressed at "Santa's Elves" at the holiday party.
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On Saturday, December 10th, CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties held a holiday party for the children we serve and other foster youth in our community. More than 150 guests, including over 75 children, enjoyed a morning of holiday crafts, cookie decorating, pictures with Santa, and all the children in attendance received a special holiday gift.
Thank you to The Ranch Country Club for hosting the event, and for the following individuals who helped make this a memorable holiday party!
- All of the volunteers who joined us on Friday, December 9th to wrap gifts for more than 200 children.
- The Northglenn/Thornton Rotary Club who purchased supplies & volunteered during the event.
- The Broomfield Rotary for donating more than 40 refurbished bicycles for the children.
- Verte Photography for taking pictures with Santa that were sent home with the families.
Thank you to everyone who helped put on this event, and thank you to everyone for coming to enjoy some holiday cheer! If you are a CASA Volunteer Advocate, please watch for details about the next upcoming CASA Child event in the Volunteer Voice.
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December Advocate of the Month
Yvonne Sell
Yvonne Sell is a third year law student at DU Law where she is pursuing a career in juvenile law. Yvonne first learned about CASA from her mother who persuaded her to volunteer for the organization because she knew that Yvonne was passionate about being an advocate for children in need. Yvonne was sworn in as a CASA Volunteer Advocate in September of 2015. Yvonne has been assigned to one case since becoming a CASA Volunteer Advocate. In this case she represents a young boy who does not have a great deal of family support. Recently, her CASA Child was in a situation where he needed to be removed from his family. He was taken to a group home as there were no available foster families to take him in. Yvonne made sure that she was able to visit with him that day, so her CASA Child was able to see at least one familiar face in a very unfamiliar and scary setting. READ MORE
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Bob Lembke
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Members of the CASA Board & Staff pictured with Bob Lembke at the SIEP grant opening in Kersey, Colorado.
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We are proud to recognize Bob Lembke as one of our Benefactor Partners. "Benefactor Partners" are a group of individuals and/or businesses that provide support for abused and neglected children at the $20,000 or more level per year.
Bob Lembke is currently Managing Principal of the real estate development firm The Bromley Companies that is headquartered in Greenwood Village and develops retail/commercial centers, industrial parks, and multi-family residential communities. Bob has worked in the real estate business as a Principal for more than fifteen years, and is also actively involved in developing water resources along the Front Range with United Water & Sanitation District. As one of our Benefactor Partners, Bob's support ensures the best interests of children in need in Adams & Broomfield Counties are represented in court. READ MORE
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Cookies Count
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Volunteers & Members of the CASA Staff packaging cookies.
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CASA's Cookies Count is officially wrapped up, and we are so grateful for everyone who made it such a success! Thank you to our Cookies Count Sponsors - Bluepoint Bakery, Omni Financial Charity Foundation, & Team Packaging, Inc! We'd like to send a special thank you to Rob Lederman and everyone at Bluepoint Bakery who produced and donated more than 10,000 cookies to make Cookies Count possible!
We would also like to thank Wells Fargo for allowing us to use their space for cookie pick-up locations, and Bill Christopher & Diana Loeck who took time out of their busy schedules to help package cookies.
And of course, thank you to everyone who ordered sugar cookies this holiday season!
100% of the Cookies Count proceeds will help CASA recruit, train, and supervise more CASA Volunteer Advocates to support the best interests of abused and neglected children here in our community.
Thank you again to our generous Cookie Sponsors! For more information about CASA's Cookies Count, please contact
Erin Kaminski at 303.655.3927 or erin@casa17th.com.
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CASA 101 Informational Session
Do you know someone who is looking to get involved with the community ? And is looking for some kind of volunteer opportunity? They should become a CASA Volunteer Advocate! The first step is learning what it means to be a CASA Volunteer Advocate, so encourage them to come to our next CASA 101 Informational Session on January 5th. We will be discussing all the fundamentals of CASA, including our mission as an organization, the role a CASA Volunteer Advocate will play in court and the child's life, the time commitment required, as well as many other topics. Join us on the evening of January 5th from 6:00 - 7:00PM, at Zoe's Coffee at 11225 Decatur Street in Westminster. For more information, click HERE or email any questions to Carly Wooldridge, Outreach & Recruitment Coordinator, at carly@casa17th.com.
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CASA on Colorado & Company
On Wednesday, November 21st, CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties appeared on the morning show, Colorado and Company. Executive Director, Linday Lierman, & Events & Campaigns Manager, Erin Kaminski, represented CASA and discussed our mission, the CASA Volunteer Advocate role, & CASA's Cookies Count with host Tawyna Rush.
Thank you to Colorado and Company for having us on the show. We hope to be featured again soon! If you weren't able to watch the video when it aired, click the image above to watch our full segment.
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Upcoming January Training Class 
Our next advocate training class is scheduled to begin on Saturday, January 14th, at the Adams 12 Five Star School Conference Center - 1500 E. 128th Ave., Thornton, CO 80241. Each new CASA Volunteer Advocate will spend a total of 30 hours in pre-service training, with 15 hours in the classroom over the course of two Saturday's (January 14th & 28th), while the other 15 hours will be spent out of class, doing the assigned homework. Both Saturday training sessions will take place from 9:00AM - 4:30PM.
All CASA Volunteer Advocates are welcome to join any of these trainings as a refresher course. A detailed class schedule can be found by clicking HERE.
Please spread the word about this upcoming class to your family and friends and colleagues who would make a great CASA Volunteer Advocate. Please contact Carly Wooldridge, Outreach & Recruitment Coordinator, with those names or any questions at carly@casa17th.com.
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Great Ways to Invest in CASA
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Workplace Giving or
Payroll Deductions
| Community Shares is celebrating thirty years of giving! With the help of Community Shares, workplace giving is easier than ever with automatic payroll deduction.
Choose CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties (5140) for your Community Shares workplace designation and you can help provide a caring CASA Volunteer Advocate for an abused or neglected child.
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King Soopers Neighborhood Reward Program 
| Help raise money for CASA by shopping for groceries! We will provide you with a reloadable King Soopers card that you will then transfer money onto in order to use at checkout when shopping at King Soopers. 5% of the total purchase will be donated to CASA.
To get a designated CASA King Soopers card, please contact us at 303.654.3378. | |
Shop with Amazon Smile
| Sign up with Amazon Smile for all your Amazon shopping needs! The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of purchase price from all eligible purchases to CASA!
Simply visit smile.amazon.com to get started, sign in with your existing Amazon account, and then search for "CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties" as the charitable organization you wish to support. |
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Window Covering Safety Council Partnership
CASA has teamed up with the Window Covering Safety Council (WCSC) and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to urge parents and caregivers to check their window coverings for exposed or dangling cords that can pose a strangulation hazard to infants and young children, and to retrofit or replace them with today's safer products.
The partnership stems from a deep-rooted commitment to ensure that ALL children are safe in their homes. Since CASA Volunteer Advocates visit the homes and foster homes of children they work with, the partnership is a perfect fit. All CASA Volunteer Advocates are trained to share window covering safety information with the parents, foster parents, and caregivers they come into contact with.
To learn more about window-cord safety, or to order free retrofit kits, go to the Window Covering Safety Council's website HERE.
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Upcoming Events & Happenings
We work hard to raise a large portion of our budget through special events and other happenings. We also take every opportunity to spread the word about the work we do and our need for more caring, committed folks to join our efforts. We greatly appreciate your help with these two goals.
JANUARY 2016
CASA 101 Informational Session, 01.05.17
January CASA Volunteer Advocate Training Class, 01.14.17
Kick off the New Year Breakfast, 01.21.17
January CASA Volunteer Advocate Training Class, 01.28.17
January Swearing In Ceremony, 01.31.17
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Carly's Corner
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Carly Wooldridge, Outreach & Recruitment Coordinator
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Happy holidays, everyone! CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties envisions a bright future for every child, and with your help we can make that dream a reality! We aspire to serve an additional 600 local children each year who desperately need a loving and committed CASA Volunteer Advocate by their side.
Our most effective way to reach more community members is through YOU, our greatest support. As you attend holiday festivities, meet with family and friends, and join in other fun community events to celebrate the season, are there people you know that envision a bright future for every child, and seek to gain incredible experience by becoming a CASA Volunteer Advocate? If so, please contact me to discuss the details at 303.655.3932 or carly@casa17th.com.
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Courthouse festivities featured Chief Judge Murphy, Commissioner Tedesco, & Division of Children & Family Services Director Jan James.
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On Saturday, November 19th, CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties celebrated National Adoption Day at the Adams County Justice Center by witnessing the adoptions of twelve children with their forever families. The CASA Staff was on hand to participate in the celebration along with the juvenile court staff, including Chief Judge Patrick Murphy, Magistrate Fran Simonet and Judge Sharon Holbrook, as well as staff from the Adams County Human Services Department that included Jan James, Division Director, Chris Kline, Department Director, & Edie Winters, Permanency Manager.
The festivities began with welcomes from Chris Kline & Chief Judge Patrick Murphy, followed by the reading of the National Adoption Day Proclamation by Adams County Commissioner Charles "Chaz" Tedesco. The families were then invited into the courtrooms to finalize the adoptions. Of the twelve children who were adopted on this special day, two of our CASA Children were welcomed into their forever families! We were so thrilled to participate in such a joyous day and are so incredibly happy for those families who have gained a new family member.
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On Tuesday, December 6th, individuals across the state participated in Colorado's largest one-day online giving event by donating to nonprofit organizations online. Over the course of 24 hours, Colorado Gives Day raised over $33.8 million for over 2,100 local nonprofits, and our committed CASA supporters generously gave over $7,000 to support our program.
This support means that we will be able to recruit, train, and supervise more CASAVolunteer Advocates for children we serve in Adams & Broomfield Counties. Thank you to everyone who contributed!
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Congratulations to Bluepoint Bakery!
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Rob Lederman of Bluepoint Bakery with Lindsay Lierman & Erin Kaminski of CASA.
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On Thursday, November 10th, at National Philanthropy Day in Colorado, Bluepoint Bakery was awarded the title of Outstanding Small Business by the Association for Fundraising Professionals during their award luncheon. Bluepoint Bakery was awarded with this honor due to their desire to give back to their community by feeding the hungry and creating strong financial foundations for nonprofits like CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties & Project Angel Heart.
CASA & Project Angel Heart jointly nominated Bluepoint for this award based on the partnership each organization has with the bakery during CASA's Cookies Count and Project Angel Heart's Pie in the Sky fundraisers.
We are so incredibly fortunate to work with such an amazing small business, and are so proud of Rob Lederman, Willie Ramirez, & everyone at Bluepoint Bakery who work so hard for the betterment of their community.
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Join us at The Melting Pot in January!
We have another great opportunity for you to support CASA by going out to eat! The Melting Pot at 732 Main Street in Louisville will host a dine out fundraiser during the month of January. Dine out and make a difference! For more information, please contact Erin Kaminski
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Scarves Made by CASA Volunteer Advocate, Kyle Maher
We are very happy to recognize CASA Volunteer Advocate, Kyle Maher, who has been helping raise awareness for CASA by selling her handmade scarves at various festivals this year. Kyle was recently at the Fall Festival Bazaar in October selling her scarves for $10 each. Half of the profits she made from selling her scarves that day were donated to CASA of Adams & Broomfield Counties. We can't thank her enough for all of her hard work and advocacy. If you would like to buy Kyle's scarves please contact Kyle Maher directly at kyle13948@msn.com.
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Colorado Child Abuse and Neglect Public Awareness Campaign
Help educate and encourage the public to report suspected child abuse and neglect through the
Colorado Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline:
1-844-CO-4-KIDS
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Featured in The Daily Post, November 28th
Order Cookies Count Treats to Help CASA Help Kids
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