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Junior League of the Great Lakes Bay Region Presented $20,000 to CAN Council’s CASA Program
SAGINAW, Mich. – The Junior League of the Great Lakes Bay Region presented a $20,000 donation to the CAN Council’s Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program in honor of the CASA program’s 20th anniversary.
The Junior League of the Great Lakes Bay Region and the CAN Council have been intertwined for over 40 years. The League donated $40,000 to CAN Council in 2002 to help start the CASA program.
“The Junior League’s members have remained among our strongest champions over the years,” Emily Yeager, CAN Council’s President and CEO, said. “This gift in recognition of our 20 years of service will propel us into our next 20 years and ensure our advocacy for the community’s most vulnerable children. The Junior League’s contribution is a reminder of the value this community places on our children – and all this community can do on its very own to protect them.”
CASAs are highly-trained volunteers who serve as a voice for children in Bay and Saginaw County who are in the system due to abuse and neglect. The first CASA case assigned in Saginaw County was on May 30, 2002.
“The League is excited to be able to give back again to this program,” Danielle Thurman, Junior League of the Great Lakes Bay Region’s 2021-2022 President, said. “What this organization does for the children in our community is not measurable.”
About Junior League of the Great Lakes Bay Region
For 88 years, the Junior League of the Great Lakes Bay Region has been dedicated to women’s training and development and community action. For more information, visit www.jlgreatlakesbay.org.
About CAN Council’s CASA program
CASA volunteers advocate on behalf of one child or family at a time, as opposed to the full caseloads managed by DHHS workers and lawyer-guardians ad litem. These volunteers stay with each case until it’s closed and the child or sibling group is placed in a safe, permanent home. For many of these children, their CASA volunteer will be the one constant adult presence in their lives. For more information, visit https://cancouncil.org/programsservices/casa/.
Donors like you ensure our caring, expert staff are here for every child that walks through our doors. You provide the resources for us to protect children and strengthen families. You fulfill the hope that there are people who will listen, believe, and help our most vulnerable children.
$25 educates a student about child abuse and how to get help
$50 trains a new advocate for a child abuse survivor
$100 provides a child abuse survivor with a forensic interview
$250 provides a child abuse survivor with a medical exam
$500 educates and supports a struggling parent
$1,000 gives an abused child an advocate while in the court system
Please consider an end-of-year gift to our CAN Council to ensure – no matter what – we are equipped to continue protecting our children.
Make a contribution here
Our friends at Yeo & Yeo Foundation are matching your gift through this appeal. That means the impact of your donation will be doubled for our organization! Please give as soon as you are able, and know your gift will be put right to work.
CAN Council Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Program Director, Katherine Griffiths, has received two highly-commendable distinguishments through the National CASA Association for Children. Griffiths is one of 12 selected among 45 applicants to participate in Loyola University’s Children’s Law and Policy Executive Program and was recently appointed to serve on the Urban Leadership Council of the National CASA Association for Children.
Because of Griffiths’ strong advocacy and commitment to children, National CASA will be funding tuition costs for Griffiths to participate in the Children’s Law and Policy Executive Program. National CASA has partnered with Loyola University’s Children’s Law Center to cultivate a collaborative relationship that has led to the development of a certificate program tailored for the CASA network in Children’s Law and Policy. Loyola University, located in Chicago, Illinois, has been named the top law school in the country for child and family law.
CAN Council President/CEO Emily Yeager commends Katherine for these recent accomplishments, “Over the past five years, Katherine has personally advocated for eight children in our court system due to abuse or neglect. Truly, Katherine believes in the role our CASA Volunteers play in the lives of vulnerable children and brings her experience in the role to her volunteer management adding credibility and wisdom to the guidance she provides. Her leadership has been evident since her time as a CASA Supervisor, and I’m eager to see her utilize her Loyola education and her role on National CASA’s Urban Leadership Council to further expand our program and its impact in the lives of our children,” states Yeager.
To learn more about CAN Council’s CASA program and upcoming CASA volunteer opportunities, visit www.cancouncil.org/casa.
ONLINE TRAINING • WEDNESDAY, MAY 26 • 6-8PM
This two-hour online training educates medical professionals and other mandated reporters on how to recognize and properly report child abuse and neglect. Mandated reporters are people who, because of their profession, are legally required to report any suspicion of child abuse or neglect to the relevant authorities. These laws are in place to prevent children from being abused and to end any possible abuse or neglect at the earliest possible stage.
To attend, register via Zoom here.
Event Flyer
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You could receive over:
$3500 if you have 1 child
$5900 if you have 2 children
$6600 if you have 3 or more children
If you live in Saginaw county:
United Way of Saginaw County
Make an appt: 989.326.5290
100 S. Jefferson Ave.
Saginaw, MI 48607
If you live in Bay county:
United Way of Bay County
Make an appt: 989.893.7508
909 Washington Ave. Ste. 2
Bay City, MI 48708
If appointments are full when you call United Way, call 211 for further assistance!
Dads Talk Fatherhood is an opportunity for dads from all walks of life to connect and discuss the many complexities of fatherhood. This is a monthly discussion open to all dads.
• Third Monday of every month
• 1pm-2:30pm
• No registration required
Join us via Zoom: https://bit.ly/3xUCMR6
Passcode: 529096
Child Abuse Prevention Month is a nationwide initiative that challenges our community to examine the impact of child abuse and what we can do to prevent it. Help the CAN Council further their impact on our community in April by getting involved:
- Wear blue on Thursday, April 1st and share a photo on social media using the hashtag #WearMIBlue to raise awareness for #ChildAbusePreventionMonth!
- Keep up with CAN Council’s Facebook Page during the month of April for child abuse prevention content, fun family activities, and other opportunities to engage and raise awareness.
- Host a fundraiser for CAN Council’s child abuse prevention efforts at your school, church, civic group, place of work, or on your Facebook profile. If you’d like some assistance in coming up with some fundraising ideas, we can help – just contact Olivia at development@cancouncil.org.
- Make a pinwheel at home with this fun tutorial by Thor from Saginaw Art Museum and his daughters, and “plant” it in your yard!
- Print and color a Pinwheel Coloring Page with your child, and display it with pride!
- Attend our Stewards of Children: Mini presentation on Tuesday, April 27th. Stewards of Children: Mini is a 20-minute condensed version of CAN’s Stewards of Children prevention training, with a focus on the 5 Steps to Protecting Children. This event is free, and open to the public!
- Learn more about the program here: http://www.d2l.org/education/5-steps/
- Join via Zoom here: https://bit.ly/39BoEBH
- Password: minisoc
- Calling all Dads! April 19th we’re hosting a discussion open to all dads, called Dads Talk Fatherhood. Join us for a group discussion about the challenges fathers face with parenting in today’s world. Centering the conversation around the uniquely-American issue of fatherlessness, we will discuss how we as fathers can be more attentive in our child’s lives at different stages and how we can overcome issues we face at home and in public.
- Join via Zoom here: https://bit.ly/3uu39e7
- Passcode: 913000
- Plant Your Virtual Pinwheel Garden: Pinwheels symbolize the full and happy life that every child deserves, we “plant” them to raise awareness of both child abuse and our prevention efforts. Change your Facebook Cover Photo to the below image to “plant” a virtual pinwheel garden on your Facebook profile:
Meet Hannah.
You make it possible for Hannah to have our safe, supportive environment for her forensic interview. You give her hope that there are people who will listen, believe and help her. Please consider an end-of-year gift to our CAN Council to ensure – no matter what – we are equipped to continue protecting our children.
Make a contribution to:
Bay/Arenac County | Huron County | Saginaw County
Our friends at Yeo & Yeo are matching dollar for dollar your gift through this appeal. That means the impact of your gift will be doubled for our organization! Please give as soon as you are able, and know your gift will be put right to work.
