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| Library: Advocacy | |||||
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Corporate Sponsor Helps Local CASA Program to Flourish |
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| Document Author: National CASA - Carla Spaccarotelli,
Editor Publication: The Connection, Fall/Winter 03 Posted: 12/03 |
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When
Lake County IL CASA Executive Director, Terri Greenberg, first teamed up
with Hewitt Associates, she never imagined the alliance would result in a
long-term partnership. The partnership stands as a testament to the
power of looking for resources in your own back yard and drawing on the
individual strengths of volunteers. Lake County CASA (IL) teamed up with Hewitt Associates, a global human resources outsourcing and consulting firm, after a CASA volunteer and Hewitt employee suggested tapping into the 6,000 employees located a few blocks from the CASA office. “This volunteer’s strong belief in CASA’s mission led her to approach the Hewitt Associates’ community relations director and discuss CASA,” said Greenberg. On-site information sessions were soon implemented at Hewitt Associates during lunch and after work hours. This partnership deepened when the community relations director attended the sessions and became a volunteer. Greenberg notes, “This really illustrates how volunteers themselves can potentially be major resources in program development and expansion. “ Partnerships like this can be powerful according to Greenberg, “A partnership implies an on-going relationship where the company buys into your mission and continues, hopefully to support the organization.” Hewitt Associates has since helped its local program in a number of ways: providing monetary donations, supporting volunteer recruitment and hosting onsite volunteer recruitment and training sessions. Additional employee help has come in the form of holiday events, corporate newsletter mentions and promotion of CASA events. “I spent a lot of time talking to the community relations director about CASA and the potential for Hewitt Associates to make dramatic changes in the lives of children in our community,” added Greenberg. “It takes time, patience, passion, and perseverance to build a relationship like this.” It helped that Hewitt Associates has a history of community service and provides opportunities for their employees to be involved. For example, employees are given 10 hours a year to devote to volunteer work. Because of its dedication to CASA, Hewitt Associates received the 2003 Liberty Bell award presented by judges in Lake County. This award recognizes community service efforts that help the judicial process. According to Judge Valerie Ceckowski, “Hewitt Associates is like a guardian angel for CASA.” The judge noted that efforts like Hewitt’s make it possible for CASA to do the best work possibleproviding juvenile court judges with important information about abused and neglected children. “We’re so grateful for the support of Hewitt Associates,” concluded Terri Greenberg. “Generosity like this enables us to expand our volunteer and training network and serve even more children.”
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