Our Beginning

In 1976, Superior Court Judge David Soukup of Seattle, Washington, concluded that he was not obtaining sufficient relevant facts during case hearings necessary to ensure the long term welfare of the child being represented. To address this concern, he developed the concept of recruiting and training community volunteers to represent the best interest of the child in court proceedings. In 1977, the first CASA pilot program was implemented in Seattle. The purpose of the CASA program is to ensure that the abused and neglected children receive high-quality, sensitive, effective and timely representation in court hearings to determine their guardianship.

In 1978, the National Center for State Courts selected the Seattle CASA program as the best example of citizens participating in juvenile justice, resulting in the replication of the program in courts across the country. ~Quote from US Dept of Justice Audit Report 2006

Today there are more than 68,000 advocates serving in 1,018 state and local program offices nationwide.

The driving force behind the formation of CASA Child Advocates of Montgomery County Inc, Texas, was a local Judge who recognized the need to improve services for abused and neglected children. He engaged and organized individuals who later established the county’s CASA program.

On October 25, 1990 a small but determined group of volunteers from our community met to discuss the formation of a CASA program in Montgomery County. Their goal was to create a non-profit organization that would train volunteers to serve as Court Appointed Special Advocates for abused and neglected children under the Court’s jurisdiction. Over the course of the next two years, committees were formed, office space was acquired and the first Director was hired.

The first class of volunteers completed training in January 1992 and in February 1992, 10 volunteers were sworn in and began serving 28 children.

At the initial meeting few in attendance would recognize the impact their vision would have on Montgomery County, Texas.

CASA Child Advocates of Montgomery County, Inc, Texas is a member of the National CASA Association.