CASA Playhouse Helps Agency Serve Abused and Neglected Children
06/19/2009
What better way to teach children about environmental consciousness than literally incorporating it into their play1/2 The 2009 Casa4CASA playhouse benefit embodies the principles of environmentally friendly building while helping raise the funds essential for Douglas County CASA to ensure that abused and neglected children in our area grow up in safe, permanent homes. A special addition to the playhouse tour this year will be the placement of life-size "Forgotten Children" cutouts - each bearing a message from a very real foster child, powerfully demonstrating that foster kids need a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) to ensure their voices are heard. These Forgotten Children made their debut last May with a dramatic display of 4,250 life-size cutouts placed in the shadows of the Washington Monument. "The CASA playhouse and the life-size displays are powerful reminders of children in our community who are especially vulnerable and often deprived of many joys taken for granted in childhood," said CASA Director Diana Frederick. "It's not unusual for the children CASA serves to live in more than a dozen foster homes. Our volunteers make a tremendous difference in their lives." The 2009 CASA playhouse is the product of Denton Nichols of Treanor Architects and builder Kenton Knowles of Global Homes Design. "For me, the important part of the word playhouse is play," Nichols said. "The interlocking masses and blocks of color are meant to be a canvas for inventive play - not a diminutive version of a kind of building that most children are already familiar with. The nontraditional forms have fewer predetermined associations, so kids can make of the playhouse whatever their imaginations suggest." According to builder Kenton Knowles, the CASA playhouse exemplifies both sustainability and play. "The function is play;" Knowles said, "meaning stimulating out-of-the box thinking, surprise, creativity, and in this case, the concept of opening doors for the kids involved in the CASA organization. Some of the materials have come from an old mobile home, donations to the Habitat Restore, an old school house near Vinland, and materials that have been damaged in transportation, etc. All symbolic if one thinks about it." The 2009 CASA playhouse is symbolic on many levels, but it also offers plenty of fun for kids and adults alike who visit the playhouse while it is on tour throughout Lawrence. The house will be on display - and chances to win it available. - The Community Mercantile, 9th and Iowa streets, June 27 to July 2 and July 7 to 9 - WalMart on S. Iowa St., July 3 to 6 - HyVee on W. 6th St., July 10-15 - At 9th and Massachusetts streets during the Downtown Lawrence Sidewalk Sale July 16 - At the Farmer's Market in Downtown Lawrence July 17 to 18, including the Casa4CASA drawing party July 18 at Cielito Lindo restaurant. Donations ($1 per ticket) are accepted at display sites for the opportunity to win the playhouse. Donations are also accepted online at www.dccasa.org, at the CASA office, 1100 Massachusetts, Suite 302, and at The Merc customer service counter throughout the tour. The lucky winner of the CASA playhouse will be drawn at a Casa4CASA fiesta from 7 to 10 pm on July 18 at Cielito Lindo restaurant, 815 New Hampshire, but you need not be present to win. The event is open to the public. The $40 admission, payable at the door or in advance via the agency web site, includes Mexican entrees, beer, margaritas, a silent auction and more. The June 18 event will also include the third annual Honorable Jean F. Shepherd Volunteer of the Year Awards to a CASA volunteer and a Citizens Review Board volunteer. The awards will be presented by Judge Shepherd, who founded Douglas County CASA in 1991, and started CRB in 1986. Nationally, the CASA program was created in 1977 by Seattle Judge David Soukup. Today, CASA has grown to a network of 60,000 volunteers that annually serve more than 240,000 abused and neglected children through more than 950 CASA programs nationwide. Locally, Douglas County CASA has served more than 700 abused and neglected children since the service was founded in 1991. "Due to recent economic challenges and funding cuts, the Casa4CASA fundraiser is especially important to our agency this year," said Missy Martin, Douglas County CASA board president. "We don't want children who have suffered abuse and neglect to be forgotten, and we are asking everyone to step forward with the great support that characterizes our community. It's a lively event in support of a serious cause." For more information about Douglas County CASA and an August training session for new volunteers, visit the organization's web site using the link below.
Related Links:
Douglas County CASA - http://www.dccasa.org
Media Contact:
Diana Frederick, Executive Director
785-832-5172
dfrederick@douglas-county.com