The CJC

Volunteering at the CJC has been a little different then I expected. I signed up to help every Thursday from 8-10am through August. My job is to hangout with the kids who are waiting to be interviewed. They have been anywhere from 5 to 16 years old. The two biggest rules are not to offer them food/drink before their interview so that it cannot be construed as a bribe later in court, and to not ask the type of questions that may lead the child to disclose details to me rather than the interviewers.

When you apply to volunteer you have to fill out a short form asking about your feelings regarding child abuse as well as how you feel about the abusers. This made me begin thinking about how I was going to interact with the people I came across.

It turns out that the adults you see are either foster parents, the parent that is not the abuser, a case worker, etc, and you have absolutely no contact with the abuser, which only makes sense. The children come in, and as with all children, personalities vary. Quiet, shy, talkative, a little edgy, kind....all descriptors of kids I've seen and interacted with. Every one a lovely child.

The thought that run through my mind each time I see a new child is...I would never know if I were to see you on the street. From all appearances and interactions, they are just like any other kid you'd meet on the street or playground or even at church. It's good and sad at the same time....that they are adaptable, but that there may be so many people out there that to just look at and have these superficial conversations with, you would never know the hell they may have gone through.

CASA is Court Appointed Special Advocates, and I'd love to be a volunteer with them. I chose to do this volunteer work at CJC to "get my toes wet" and to see if it's something I could mentally handle. I think it would be a privilege to be an CASA advocate, and I feel that after my short time at the CJC it's something that I'm even more interested in pursuing.