Volunteer Profile
Emogene Pye
Wayne County CASA
Detroit, MI
My CASA friends call me Jeanie Pye.
I retired in 1996 after 32 years
with the Ford Motor Company, where
my job was to make seat covers for
cars and trucks. I then traveled to
Europe and other places, which I
enjoyed. But after awhile, I had to
find something else to do with my
time. So I got more involved in my
church committees. I also went to
art school and learned to draw and
do many arts and crafts. I love it!
While in school, I was looking for a
picture to draw and came across the
word CASA. I read what it was all
about, and it stuck with me. I
eventually called the 800 number and
was referred to Wayne County CASA in
Detroit.
I have been a CASA advocate for
eight years now. My dedication to
each family has made me act like
their shadow, trying to lead them in
the right direction that will help
them to reunite with their children.
Or when that’s not possible, to have
the child placed in a new, loving
adoptive home.
So far, I have worked with four
families and 19 children. I like
being a CASA volunteer because it
makes me feel that I’m giving
something back to the community.
Anything I can do for children is
always rewarding. I especially like
to see the joy in their eyes when
they get to see their mother for the
first time after they have been
removed from their home and
separated from each other.
When I do my job as a CASA volunteer
and the parents do theirs, it’s
usually possible for families to
stay together. Sometimes the mother
is able to comply with the court
order and the children return home.
Other times, a parent can’t or won’t
get the needed services. Then I have
to recommend that the children be
placed in suitable homes with foster
parents or next of kin, at least for
the time being.
My third CASA case initially made me
somewhat nervous, but it all ended
well. The judge was ready to take
the children away from the mother.
Instead, he chose to put a CASA
volunteer on the case to see what
was taking the mother so long to
comply with the court order. I do
believe in keeping the children
together if we can. The mother
really loved her children. It took a
lot of investigating to get this
family back together, but I did
that. And now they are doing fine.
At one point, the mother lost her
job and went to a shelter for
awhile. But she had enough
confidence in me as a CASA volunteer
that she called and asked me to
advocate for letting the father take
the children rather than putting
them back into the system. I spoke
with the father and did some other
checking to make sure this was the
right solution. Then I called the
caseworker. She agreed to let the
father care for the children. This
is just one example of why it is so
important to work together with the
other people involved in a case.
At their request, I have kept in
touch with this family even though
the case is closed. As they grow up,
the children are proving to be very
bright. The girls have a 4.0 GPA,
and the boy has a 3.2. The mother
has a new job and is doing fine. If
there had not been a CASA volunteer
for these children, I’m sure they
would have been split up into
different homes.
I am very proud of what we do.
Anyone who cares about children,
especially if they have raised a
family, could be a good volunteer. I
don’t think that there could be a
better program— for children or for
advocates themselves—than CASA. |
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