Help Put a Face on a Statistic

Statistics don’t mean much when that is all they are, numbers on charts and graphs. I learned that terrible fact of life in the Navy. As a radioman, one of the tasks I performed was to quickly read and relay messages from the Vietnam War zone to the brass in Pearl Harbor and Washington.
As is too frequently the case with office types, acronyms are meaningless. I paid little mind to those countless messages that reported, in such a cold manner, KIA and MIA.
When reality set in, I understood those KIA numbers were killed in action, and the MIAs were missing in action. Still, I was far removed from the screaming and bloodshed, the suffering and calls for wives and mothers and fathers as those brave souls, whose bodies were torn to shreds, went to their eternal rest.
It is not until we hug a father or mother who has lost their only son or daughter to war that those acronyms suddenly become real people with names and faces. They become our own, our neighbors, the boy down the street, the girl next door, our uncle or brother or sister.
So, you see, numbers are so deceiving and meaningless. It makes no difference whether they stand for “killed by drunk drivers,” or “victims of domestic violence,” or “foster children.” All are the same, not us, of course, always someone else, the next guy, we would not be such a number.
At the April 9 freeholder meeting, Julie Bellezza, the recruitment coordinator of the local group of the Court Appointed Special Advocates, was present to accept a framed copy of a resolution, passed by the board, proclaiming April as Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention Month in Cape May County.
How many of us may give that news article and photograph a quick glance, think, “Oh, yeah, that’s nice. What did the Flyers do last night?” That was like me back in the old Navy relay center passing along those teletype messages reporting KIAs and MIAs, just another day at the office, numbers shuffled into charts somewhere in the Pentagon, lost forever in the fog of war.
Bellezza, before she accepted the plaque, told the board a bit about the group, which serves as friends of the court in matters pertaining solely to foster children in Cape May and Atlantic counties. Here is where it hits below the belt, and got my attention.
Last year, CASA volunteers looked after 316 children, 150 of them from Cape May County. Those children ranged in age from birth to 21.
No, CASA volunteers, about 170 of them total, do not take foster children into their homes. They are not like Big Brothers and Big Sisters. They are trained for 30 hours prior to being named by Family Court as a special advocate. In that capacity, they are quite different from any other volunteer since they may review the child’s medical records, school files, and “every aspect of their life,” said Bellezza.
“They are in a unique position, because they can speak to every person…involved in the (foster) child’s life,” she told me.
Volunteers in Cape May County, from 40-45 percent, are from Ocean City, will spend between five and 10 hours per month “advocating for the child.”
Since CASA is supposed to be a steadying influence in the lives of those foster children, the volunteer routinely remains with that child’s case from 12 to 18 months.
In that span of this quick-paced life, case managers, judges, therapists, even homes may change. The only constant thing in that foster child’s life remains the CASA volunteer.
So what?
Well, as Bellezza said, it’s been proven that foster children who are linked with CASA volunteers do better in school, spend less time in foster care, and generally have a better start in life.
The goal, she underscored, of every CASA volunteer is to place the child in a safe, permanent home.
After training, the agency does its best to place a volunteer with the age child with which he or she is most comfortable. If you are keen on caring for tiny babes, there is a place for you. If you are better working with older children, there are those who need you. If you have that unique talent of working with teens, they, too, have a child you might be able to assist, and that may be more vital than in the younger age groups.
Based in Somers Point, CASA has an awesome goal in its five-year plan. There are “upward of 800 children in foster care in the two counties we serve,” said Bellezza. CASA’s goal is to serve every one of them.
Do the math: 800 children in foster care. 350 (in both counties) served last year, almost half of those from Cape May County. 170 volunteers. 513 children are still waiting for someone to advocate for them.
“It is a good cause,” Bellezza added.
There are no requirements to be a CASA volunteer other than be over 21. You don’t have to be college educated. You don’t have to be pretty or witty. You simply have to care about that foster child whose life you may influence.
If life has been good to you, perhaps you have been granted an early retirement, and are tired of playing golf and watching daytime television. You might be just the person to help a boy or girl along life’s rugged road.
There are certainly enough pitfalls along the road for them to fall into, maybe you could be the one to pull them out and set them aright.
The next training class starts April 29.
If you are moved to put a face on a statistic and make a difference in one small life, why not call Bellezza and talk about it? CASA’s number is (609) 601-7800. After you, they won’t be a statistic any longer. They will be a real girl or boy with a name and hope.