We are growing our community in Antelope Valley and are excited to offer trainings in our CASA LA AV Community Hub. If you have friends, colleagues, or community connections in the area who may be interested in learning more about CASA or becoming involved, please share the information session opportunity with your network. Your referrals help us grow our impact and serve more children.

We offer a variety of information session formats to fit your schedule and preferences, including virtual, in-person, and on-demand webinar options.

Information session sign ups

Tell us a little about yourself.

I was born and raised in midtown Manhattan with my parents and two younger sisters. I was a child actress.  In 1972, I moved to CA to pursue my acting career.  I met my husband Bruce while working on a show.  We were married for 45 years until his passing in January this year.  He was incredibly supportive of my work as a CASA. We have a son, Drew, and a 10 year old granddaughter, Bowie.  I also have 6 grandchildren through Bruce’s children.

What inspired you to become a CASA volunteer, and what has kept you involved for 40 years?

When I first moved to California, I joined a guild supporting a group home and volunteered with the teenage girls who were residents. I loved spending time with them and realized how meaningful that work was to me. I made a friend through the guild, Jacquie Dolan, who was the founding president of Friends of Child Advocates and was invited to join the board. I realized I didn’t want to serve on the board, I wanted to be a CASA volunteer. As soon as I became an advocate, I gave up acting because I had found my true passion. I did also end up serving on the board too!

Can you share a moment when you knew your advocacy had made a meaningful difference in a child’s life?

I immediately think of the case of a three-year-old little boy who was abandoned at a hospital. Through persistence, careful follow-up, and a number of unexpected moments that came together, I was able to locate his grandmother, who was living in Philadelphia. The child and grandmother were reunited in court on Christmas Eve, and it was truly an ultimate high. Seeing that little boy reconnect with his family was a life-changing moment, and it reminded me of the incredible difference a CASA can make in a child’s life.

But I also think of a much smaller moment that made a huge difference. I had educational rights for a little girl who was really struggling in school. She was doing well in the one resource class where she learned in a smaller setting, but the school resisted moving her to a Special Day Class where she could receive that support throughout the day. I built a strong relationship with her resource teacher, and together we advocated for the placement we knew would help her succeed. The difference was huge. With the right support and learning environment, she began to thrive, started to believe she could learn, and eventually graduated from high school.

What’s one of the most important lessons you’ve learned through your years as a CASA volunteer?

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that you can’t measure success only by whether things turn out the way you hoped. Sometimes the effects of the trauma or the mental health challenges are so great that they can’t follow through. It took me a while to realize that often it is that they can’t rather than won’t. That understanding has helped me a lot.

How has volunteering with CASA changed you as a person?

I am such a better person for having been a CASA! It has been a gift to get to know people with life experiences so different from my own and to broaden my perspective. I also surprised myself by becoming much more assertive. Speaking up for my CASA child eventually gave me the confidence to speak up for myself.

What would you say to someone who’s considering becoming a CASA volunteer?

The work can be difficult, but it can also be incredibly rewarding. Building trust, especially with older youth, may take time, so hang in there. As they see you’re committed, they almost always begin to trust you. Be tenacious, because navigating the system isn’t always easy. There will be wonderful endings, good endings, and disappointing endings, but I believe with all my heart that I have some impact on every child to whom I am appointed.

Thank you Renne for your incredible advocacy over the last 40 years! 

Here’s a list of free activities to do across Los Angeles, provided by the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles’ Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities.

Click here to learn more. 

When: August 18th at 7pm

Where: CASA’s home in Santa Monica

We’re Reading: “Safe: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care and the Risks We Take for Family” by Mark Daley

RSVP: contact Lisa Baskin (ba*****@*******al.net)

*Space is limited to those with completed COVID-19 vaccines.

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