Volunteers wanted!
The Guardian Ad Litem Program trains and supports community volunteers to be the voice for abused, abandoned and neglected children in court. Our Guardian ad Litem (GAL) volunteers are appointed by judges to advocate for children who have been removed from their home and are now part of the child welfare system. A GAL Volunteer fights to make sure that their basic rights and essential needs won't get overlooked or ignored by the system, and that no opportunity is denied to them due to situations beyond their control.
Did you know:
- A child with a GAL spends about half the time in foster care, and is twice as likely to be successfully adopted
- 40% of America's homeless population are children who aged out of foster care without finding a permanent home
- 90% of Florida's inmates are former foster youth
- There are over 3,000 children involved in this system in Miami-Dade
- Of these kids, we are only able to represent 60% -- leaving 1,400 children without a voice.
Volunteers can give our kids a brighter future by giving their time and lending their voice. Learn more here: bit.ly/gal11PSA
Once you have completed a pre-interview, you will attend a 30-hour training, and be assigned a case close to your home. You will visit your children at least once a month, speak to key people in the child's life, attend court hearings, and submit monthly logs of your activities. You will also make recommendations to a judge as to what you feel is in the child's best interest, and monitor that the court's orders are carried out.
Our volunteers come from all walks of life but share a few common traits: a caring attitude toward children, a sense of responsibility to their community and a true commitment to service.
This is one cause where the actions of a single individual can have a profound impact. You can be an integral part of the solution: one individual, trained and empowered to break the cycle of abuse by ensuring that every child can thrive in the safe embrace of a loving home. Our whole community will thrive once we make sure that every member is well taken care of.
Are you ready to take a stand? Speak up today!
