Volunteer Spotlight: Chris & Jenny Perry, CASA of Frederick County

What's better than one CASA volunteer? TWO! Meet Chris and Jenny Perry, a loving married couple from Frederick County, Maryland.Chris Perry spent 25 years of his life working in the human resources field. Now he spends his days as a CASA volunteer in which he has spent the last 3 and a half years volunteering in Frederick County, Maryland. Chris first heard about being a CASA volunteer from his wife. “I first heard about CASA from my wife,” Chris said. “I volunteered because I was approaching retirement and wanted to get involved with activities that can help support my local community.”Chris is not the only family member in the Perry family who is an advocate, his wife Jenny is one too! Jenny started as a CASA volunteer in the past few months. She first heard about the program through her work as a high school counselor. After recommending the program to her husband and seeing how it has played out over the last few years, Jenny knew that she was ready to start her own journey with CASA.This is not the first time Chris and Jenny have used their free time to volunteer. They both have also volunteered in many capacities throughout the years including being tutors at a local elementary school, help out at the food bank, cooking food at a soup kitchen, and facilitating a grief support group and church youth group activities at the church in which they attend.Chris has had three cases since starting as a CASA, of which he now has two concurrent cases.His first case which was successfully closed involved three children with a kind and loving father who was an injured veteran and a mother who also loved her children but had been addicted to heroin and was dealing with multiple emotional challenges.  His two current cases involve a teenager who has experienced significant trauma during a preponderance of his life and a younger teenager who is currently in a placement situation due to dysfunctional family relationships.Jenny, being new to CASA, has worked on one case. Her current case involves a teenage girl who was returned home after living in kinship care. It is a complicated situation with three siblings and parents who have substance abuse issues.Chris does things a little differently with the kids he advocates for. “With my older male teen, I frequently take him out for a meal cause what teenager doesn’t like food!” Chris said. “With my younger teen, we tend to focus on games and he love to talk about his cool action figures.” Jenny enjoys watching her youth at ball games and likes to meet after school.When asked how a child benefits from having a CASA volunteer, Chris had this to say:“The CASA volunteer can sometimes be the one person “in the system” who offers a consistent presence and support.  I sometimes think that I am one of the few adult role models in the child’s life who laugh with the child who offers unqualified caring and support.  In one of my cases I am the only adult role model who has consistently been with the child.”When asked how a child benefits from having a CASA volunteer, Jenny had this to say:“The child receives unconditional and consistent attention from a caring adult.”Chris and Jenny both believe that being a CASA volunteer is an amazing opportunity. “You get to focus on helping children that are in difficult circumstances and help them grow in their own lives,” Jenny said. Through all this they have been able to grow themselves.For more information on becoming a CASA volunteer and speaking up for the best interests of vulnerable children, visit www.marylandcasa.org/get-involved or call 410-828-6761