COLUMBIA,SC (WACH) -- Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin announced April as designated child abuse prevention and awareness month during a luncheon for volunteers.
The Court Appointed Special Advocates also known as (CASA) is a nationwide program of volunteers working as advocates for abused and neglected children in the juvenile court system.
Richland county's CASA program is thriving with more than 400 volunteers helping kids within the county.
The luncheon was held at the Clarion in Columbia for all the volunteers.
They dimmed the lights and held a vigil of hope for the kids in the sysytem.
More than a thousand kids in Richland County enter the system every year due to abuse and neglect.
"Sexual abuse, physical abuse, and education neglect, those are the types of cases we deal with," said volunteer Thomas Clark.
Each volunteer is assigned to children who are going through cases in court, and they stay with them through the process to give the child a sense of consistency.
"We are the voice of the children so we go to court and tell the judge what is in their best interest, what they hop and desire for," said Hope Gossett, a CASA volunteer.
For more information about CASA click here.
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