NEWS

'A heart thing': Concert to benefit children of CASA Maury Co. at new location

Jay Powell
The Daily Herald
CASA of Maury County Executive Director Jessica Elam holds a flyer for the nonprofit's upcoming fundraiser concert featuring The Stolen Faces at The Factory of Columbia.

Being a child stuck in the state juvenile or foster care system can be a traumatic and confusing for children experiencing difficult life circumstances. 

Many people might not know that there are programs aimed to provide consistency and support to those children who have experienced abuse and neglect — like the programs at Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Maury County.

CASA of Maury County has provided child advocate services for many years, and recently opened its newest location at 502 N. Garden St. 

CASA Executive Director Jessica Elam is striving to raise awareness in the community about the prevalence of childhood abuse and neglect, and CASA's role in providing support.

Four years ago, about 160 child cases went through the Juvenile Court of Dependency and Neglect, while last year, it was 460-something, she said.

"It's jumped," Elam said. 

"This program and what it provides for Maury County is a really important thing. We need that, because there are children who are being abused and neglected, and they need some place to go."

The Maury Chamber & Economic Alliance, as well as city leaders join CASA of Maury County for a special ribbon cutting at its newest location Tuesday, May 10, 2022.

Working with the Department of Children's Services (DCS), Elam said case workers on average handle between 20-30 cases, which can be overwhelming when it comes to providing a consistent voice for the children. That's where CASA's team of 26 court appointed advocates and 39 volunteer advocates step in.

"Nobody, unless they are superhuman, is going to be able to do everything they need for those 20-30 children," Elam said. "A lot of people say CASA is the 'eyes and ears of the court,' but recently at a conference we were called the 'arms and legs of an overworked department.'"

While CASA provides the needed extra work to give DCS children the best care, there is always a need for things like paying the rent and utility bills, as well as paying its staff for the many hours they put into being a good advocate representative for the more than 150 cases on an annual basis.

"It costs a lot to run a nonprofit," Elam said. "We need different benefits to first fundraise, but also bring awareness to CASA. It gets the community involved, and it gives us an opportunity to talk about what we do."

The Stolen Faces, a Grateful Dead tribute band, will perform at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Sixth Annual Live Oak Arts Festival in Pascagoula.

Fundraiser Friday at Factory

Shortly before making the move to N. Garden Street, a few of CASA's advocates teamed up to organize a special fundraiser concert featuring Grateful Dead tribute band The Stolen Faces. The benefit concert will take place Friday at The Factory at Columbia, 101 N. James M. Campbell Blvd.

Tickets are $50 and are available at www.Eventbrite.com or at CASA's website at www.CASAofMauryCounty.org/Events.

Sponsors for the event include TriStar Bank, TriGreen Equipment, Baird Private Wealth Management, The Parker Group, Parman Energy Group, King's Firearms and The Factory. The Dotted Lime and Fuzzy Duck Liquors will also be providing food and beverages.

The Stolen Faces will perform at a special benefit concert at The Factory of Columbia on Friday, with proceeds being donated to CASA of Maury County.

In addition to the money raised by Friday's concert, Elam said there is always a need for more advocate volunteers. Though becoming a volunteer involves a level of commitment and training considering the nature of the work involved.

"Anybody in the community can make a difference, and you don't need a degree to become an advocate, although you have to be 21 years old, pass a background check and go through our training," Elam said.

"We have anyone from those in the food industry who are advocates all the way up to doctors. I say that because it's not an 'educational' thing, but a heart thing. If you love kids and want to make sure they have a better tomorrow, we'll provide you the education and support."

CASA is also hoping to launch a new intern program later this year, partnering with Middle Tennessee State University to allow students interested in social work to become involved first-hand.

"Ideally, I'd love to have at least 60-70 advocates at any time, especially with the growth that is going on in Maury County," Elam said.