LEWISTON — The state is seeking adult volunteers interested in becoming court appointed special advocates for children.

Thousands of children are currently under the protection of the Maine child welfare system. These children are in state care because of allegations of abuse and neglect and each of these children has an adult assigned to them by the court, or CASA. The CASA’s job is to conduct investigations and advise the court on what is in a child’s best interest. CASAs are everyday people who volunteer to be the voice of a child in a child protection case.

CASAs play a critical role in child protection cases. CASAs come from a wide variety of professional and personal backgrounds and are guided throughout the process by highly trained Maine CASA volunteer coordinators who have legal and social work training.

At this time, we have about 140 volunteers serving as advocate for over 400 children across the state. There are over 1,000 children now in state custody without a CASA volunteer. The next training is scheduled in August. FMI: contact Volunteer Coordinator Tracy Leigh at 287-5829 or e-mail: Tracy.Leigh@courts.maine.gov.