CASA of the Heartlight asks Grayson County for $3,000 to recruit volunteers for children in court cases

Michelle Kale, executive director of CASA of the Heartlight, asked the Grayson County Fiscal Court to include $3,000 in the county’s upcoming fiscal budget to help recruit and support volunteer Court Appointed Special Advocates for children involved in dependency, neglect and abuse proceedings.

"We expanded services to cover Grayson County in August 2024," Kale said, adding that CASA served 67 children last year and currently has 27 children on a waiting list in Grayson County. She said it costs the nonprofit about $2,121 to provide advocacy for a child for an entire year and contrasted that with what the state spends on foster care: "It costs the state about $2,300 per month to keep a child in foster care."

Kale told magistrates the requested local funds would be used to invest in Grayson County specifically — primarily to raise awareness and recruit additional volunteers and to support local staff who are already working out of Grayson County. She said CASA employs two Grayson-based staff: a director of operations and a volunteer coordinator, and that locally directed contributions support volunteer recruitment and program outreach.

Court members asked several clarifying questions about how funds would be used and whether money stays in Grayson County; Kale said local funds would be spent locally to build volunteer capacity. Multiple court members expressed support for CASA’s work; a motion to include the $3,000 request in the fiscal-court budget was moved and seconded and approved by voice vote.

The court’s action authorizes the requested budget inclusion for the upcoming fiscal year; Kale said CASA may ask for support in subsequent years as the program grows locally.