They were sworn as child advocates Nov. 14 by Fayette County Juvenile Court Judge Tarey Schell. Their mission: To be a voice for the voiceless.

As volunteers with the Advo-Kids organization working through the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program, Debi Furches, Juanita Florence and Roberta Di Petta have accepted the responsibility to speak up and speak out for abused and neglected children thrust into the Fayette County Juvenile Court system.

New Advo-Kids volunteer Roberta Di Petta is a grandmother with a calling. That calling landed her squarely in the Advo-Kids program after a conversation with Fayette FACTOR Director Becky Smith.

“One of my patients in the dental practice told me about it,” she said. “I had never heard about it before that. Then Becky Smith peeked my interest. In my thought process, the grown-ups are responsible for the children. The children cannot speak for themselves. They need a voice and they need protection. That’s where we come in. A lot of people may think that Fayette County, having a higher income level, may not have problems of this sort. But in reality, domestic violence, drug abuse and alcoholism are nationwide and are epidemic. The citizens need to stand up and step up and help people who are helpless.”

Advo-Kids has been in Georgia for 15 years but is relatively new to Fayette County. CASA began in 1988 as a demonstration project of Kids of Georgia Need Volunteers, Inc. In 1992, Georgia CASA became an independent, non-profit organization. Today, Advo-Kids Court Appointed Special Advocates fulfill federal law that requires that a child advocate and/or guardian be appointed in all cases of abuse or neglect. So for Juanita Florence, her past involvement with advocacy and social services was a perfect fit for CASA’s child advocacy mission.

“I have a passion for helping other people, it’s in my heart,” Florence said. “We have to help other people and it’s necessary to help other people. If we don’t do it who is going to do it? When I think about it, it’s almost like it’s something I have to do.”

Local Advo-Kids Executive Director Tammy Barnett explained that it is easy to be lulled to sleep where issues such as abuse and neglect are concerned, where the voiceless in a community are so often overlooked. To fulfill its mission, advocates assist Department of Family and Children’s Services and perform independent needs assessments that become a part of the court record.

“That adds a set of eyes and ears for the court,” she said. “And kids often receive a fuller range of services as a result.”

Former school teacher and new volunteer Debi Furches also has a passion for advocating for children. It is a long-time pursuit that has found a new mode of expression within the Advo-Kids CASA organization.

“I thought this would be a good opportunity for me to blend my passion for caring for children with my background and experience, my skills and education,” said Furches. “As a former teacher and a mother I’ve spent many years advocating for children, for my own children and my students. So this provides me a good opportunity to continue being an advocate for the children of parents who are either not willing or not able to be advocates for their own children. This gives me an opportunity to be involved on a one-on-one basis and I like that. I like being able to make a difference and know exactly who I’m touching.”

“We live in a privileged country and a privileged county,” said Di Petta. “It’s sad that the worst part of many children’s day is coming home. There are a lot of children that have to deal with drug abuse and alcoholism and domestic violence. And they need help.”

The voiceless who need help could use others to stand with them. Advo-Kids CASA can be contacted at 770-229-3116, ext. 21, or at advo_kids@yahoo.com.

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