Volunteer Spotlight: Meet Mary!
Mary Mitchell was sworn in as a CASA volunteer on June 23, 2021. Since then, she has been a dedicated advocate, supporting three children from two families. Mary’s commitment has resulted in two of those children’s cases closing. In just three and a half years, Mary has invested 618.5 hours to her CASA work, conducted 83 visits, and traveled more than 3,340 miles to visit her children and attend matters on their behalf. Mary’s compassion has made her an extraordinary advocate, ensuring that each child she serves receives the support they deserve.
Her supervisor, Mary Mulvenon said, “Everyone at CASA is impressed with Mary’s deep understanding and appreciation of the complexities of CASA work. Mary’s empathetic, honest, realistic, and meticulous approach to her advocacy has been incredibly effective and her work has truly made a difference in the lives of the children and families with whom she has worked. Thank you, Mary! We are so grateful that you have chosen to devote your valuable time and considerable talents to Fairfax CASA!”
Read on to learn more about Mary Mitchell.
Are you from here?
I grew up in Minnesota. I went to college there. My husband and I started our life in Chicago where I was a teacher. We lived a year in California and then we moved here about 25 years ago.
How would you describe yourself?
Adventurous. I would say we love to travel we’ve been all over the world.
When you’re not serving as a CASA what are you typically doing?
My husband and I just finished the New York City marathon last Sunday. So much fun. Over a million spectators there. This is our fourth marathon for both of us. We also have four kids.
I’m also getting my master’s in social work. I just started this fall.
Was social work always something you wanted to do?
It was always something I wanted to investigate. My original profession was teaching. I taught for a few years, and I took some time off to raise my kids. I ended up homeschooling all my kids because one of my children needed it. He was just that combination of genius and ADHD that wouldn’t do well in the classroom, so I decided to homeschool all my kids. I homeschooled all of them up until middle school.
What brought you to CASA?
I didn’t want to go back into the classroom after the type of freedom I had, but I knew I still wanted to do something and be in a helping profession. I had a friend who was a supervisor for CASA in the early 2000s. I was talking to her about what I wanted to do.
She said to try Fairfax CASA because it’d give me an idea of all the different services and players and see how things work. I could see if it’s even a field I want to be in at all. It did that for me. This work has really shown me a lot of different avenues at least in the child space that I could do work in.
How many CASA cases have you had? How are the ones you have currently going?
The current case has had a lot of twists and turns. It’s constantly keeping Mary and me on our toes. When I think I have something figured out, then the parents make a different turn or decision. It’s been open for over two years now.
How do you manage to find common ground with the kids in these cases?
I do littles because I have bigs at my house. This one is a toddler. She’s just starting to talk. She is recognizing I am a person she sees often and knows my name. I’m going to bring her a stuffed lamb next time I see her because every time I see her now, she asks me, “Mary have you found your little lamb?”
She knew the song and made the connection with my name. She’s so smart. I usually don’t give the kids stuff, but I thought I HAVE to give her this.
What qualities do you believe are essential for a successful CASA volunteer, and how do you demonstrate or embody these qualities?
Organization is huge. These cases can get quite complicated. I manage a household of four kids and this kind of comes naturally to me as a point of survival.
Communication skills—so being able to ask really good questions and being able to just listen to people. Following up with people too.
Empathy is huge mainly for the families and what they’re going through and the parents…it requires empathy to understand. Empathy for the kids of course who are often in difficult positions and empathy for the foster parents who are taking on the responsibility of raising these kids in the absence of their [biological] parents.
What is the best part of being a CASA?
I love seeing the kids and watching them grow.
Even though it’s not ideal being in a foster home and not to have clear permanency, but she is thriving where she is. I love to see that—a good foster home, a good connection, and good attachment.
I actually love interacting with the parents even though sometimes they can be complicated. Sometimes there’s even language challenges, but I love interacting with them because I get a rounder picture about life. I live in a suburban bubble of a lot of privilege, so it’s good for me to understand and be reminded of the fact that people walk around with a lot of stuff.
Finally, what advice would you give to someone considering becoming a CASA volunteer, based on your own experiences and insights gained from this role?
Enjoy your continuing education hours. Pick things that may be applicable to your current case but are also of interest to you in the advocacy space and read outside of that. There are so many great resources. Also, rely on your supervisor. Trust them to have your back and the organization to have your back.
We are grateful for Mary and all her efforts! We know that her experiences as a CASA have provided her with invaluable insights into the child welfare system, that will assist her as she pursues her master’s degree and continues making a positive impact on the lives of children and families.
Thank you for all you do Mary!
