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Sunflower Children's Collective asks Wabaunsee County for operating support to expand CASA and forensic services
Summary
Carson Kober, executive director of Sunflower Children's Collective, described CASA volunteer advocacy and forensic-interview services, saying county usage would equate to about $99,390 annually and requesting a local allocation equal to 10% of that amount.
Carson Kober, Executive Director of Sunflower Children's Collective, presented an overview of the agency’s services to the Board on June 15 and requested local funding support. Sunflower recently expanded to serve the 2nd Judicial District, which includes Wabaunsee County, and provides Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers and forensic interviews for child victims; Kober said the agency has 60–70 volunteers serving children in the court system.
Kober told the Commission that Wabaunsee County currently has two families with CASA volunteers. She said the agency’s average cost per child served by CASA is $3,460 and that county demand for services would equate to approximately $99,390 annually; Sunflower requested a county allocation equal to 10% of that amount to cover its local service gap. Kober also said Sunflower operates a supervised visitation program and provided counts for forensic interviews: 16 children received forensic interview services last year and 21 are currently receiving them.
Commissioners thanked Kober for the presentation and asked about funding needs; no appropriation was made at the June 15 meeting. The Board may consider the request during budget deliberations for 2027.
