Story and photo provided by CASA for Kids

This September, CASA for Kids is celebrating Sheryl Johnson as the Volunteer of the Month. Sheryl lives in Ripley and works for the OSU Student Union. She is a mother of four and grandmother to six. Sheryl has served as a CASA volunteer for about three years. She was familiar with the program through advertisements, but meeting a CASA employee sealed the deal.

“Everyone at CASA is a great sales person!” Sheryl said.

Her first case, which served three siblings, closed quickly. She is now working her second case, serving one child. Initially, she’d planned to take a break between cases. When a new case arrived that seemed a perfect fit for Sheryl, she found herself saying yes and jumping back in.

“There are a lot of people involved in these cases,” Sheryl pointed out. “I think people would be surprised how much of our work involves lawyers, judges, and DHS.”

Sheryl joined CASA because she wanted to help children in need, and CASA was a way she could do that in the time she had to give. Like Sheryl many CASA volunteers work full-time and balance other family commitments. The average time spent by a CASA volunteer is 8-10 hours each month. To learn more about what is involved in serving as a CASA, visit casaforkids.com or call 405-624-2242.