News
Local News
Posted: Sep 03, 2024 5:30 AMUpdated: Sep 03, 2024 5:30 AM
CASA of Northeast Oklahoma Celebrates Spotlight Volunteer Of The Month For September
Tom Davis
CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Northeast Oklahoma is a local nonprofit organization that trains?volunteers to advocate for?abused and neglected children in the court system in northeast Oklahoma.?? ? ?
Each month CASA recognizes a?volunteer?as a?Spotlight?Volunteer?of the Month for?their work in helping change a child's story.?For?the month of September CASA recognizes Lori VanNoy.
CASA?volunteers and staff work to help change a child’s story.??They work to make sure children who have been taken from their homes because of evidence of abuse and neglect do not face dependency court and foster care alone.?????
"I first heard about CASA from my friend Karen Oglesbee. Karen has been a volunteer with CASA for a long time. Karen explained how CASA helped advocate for children in foster care and I immediately thought it would be something I would like to do. At the time I was going to college full-time to finish my Bachelor's Degree. To complete my education, I needed to find an internship. I reached out to CASA and with Karen’s recommendation, they took me on as an intern. During my time interning, I came to learn more about what CASA does and how important a CASA volunteer’s voice is to a child in court. When my internship was done, I left with a desire to become a volunteer and do my part in helping the foster children in my community,” said Lori VanNoy.
Lori and her husband, Carter, have been married for 28 years and have six children together. She has served as a CASA volunteer advocate for a little over a year. She also completed a prior three month internship with CASA.
"The most rewarding part of working as a volunteer has been working with families. I have loved getting to know the little boy I was assigned to serve and his foster family. His case recently closed, and I could not have asked for a better outcome for him.
I know not all cases have a happy outcome, but I am thrilled that this one did,’ said VanNoy. “The most frustrating thing regarding my volunteering is how long it takes for cases to go through court and how long children have to stay in the foster care system,” said VanNoy.
“Volunteering gives me a chance to look outside of myself and my family and do something good for others. Children are the innocent victims of so many bad things. Volunteering for CASA is a a small thing I can do to try and make up for some of those bad things. I can make a positive difference in the lives of the children I work with and that is motivating,” said VanNoy.
“This seemed like the perfect time to recognize Lori as the Spotlight Volunteer of the Month for not only what she has accomplished as a volunteer, but because it will be the last opportunity to do so. I am happy to announce that Lori will be joining the CASA of Northeast Oklahoma staff and will be covering both Craig and Washington County,” said Sandra Rains, Assistant Director.
“Congratulations to Lori VanNoy on being selected Spotlight Volunteer of the Month for September and welcome to the CASA staff. We know you will make a significant impact in improving the lives of children living in foster care in Craig and Washington County.”
“I am motivated to take the next step from being a volunteer to joining the CASA staff because it gives me the opportunity to make a larger impact for good. While I will miss being a volunteer, I love the people that work at CASA and I am thrilled to be joining their team. I will be serving in Washington and Craig counties and look forward to getting to know the volunteers and the children they serve,” said VanNoy. “I hope to build a stronger relationship between CASA and other community organizations in Bartlesville and the other communities in Washington and Craig County so that we can better serve the families we work with. I also hope to find more volunteers so that we can serve more kids in our area.”
“Something that most people might not know about Lori is that I am a little bit of a foodie. I rarely make the same recipe twice and love to experiment with new ingredients and styles of cooking. Unfortunately, I also find it terrifying to invite people over for dinner so the only people that ‘get to’ try all my new recipes are the members of my family,” said VanNoy.
“If someone is considering becoming a CASA volunteer, I would say DO IT! The children we work with deserve all the help we can give them, and it feels good to serve others. If fear is making anyone hesitate to volunteer, I would encourage them to do it anyway. I think they would be surprised by how much joy comes from being a volunteer,” said VanNoy.
“Emily Bowling and Sandra Rains have done such a wonderful job mentoring me as a volunteer. They act more like a listening ear, therapist, and friend than they do a supervisor. I hope to learn from them how to be that kind of supervisor to volunteers I will be working with,” said VanNoy.
The CASA movement is central to fulfilling society's fundamental obligation by making sure a qualified, compassionate adult will fight for?and protect a child's right to be safe, to be treated with dignity and respect and learn and grow in the safe embrace of a loving family.??????
« Back to News