Our advocate volunteers truly are the roots that keep our mission strong and growing! On Tuesday, September 23, 2025, at Butler’s Courtyard in League City, we celebrated the time, passion, and commitment our advocates pour into nurturing the children we serve. We welcomed our volunteers, their plus ones, board members, staff, and other partners to help us celebrate each volunteer that ensures every child has an advocate on their side. Among our guests, we welcomed DFPS, Region 6B Multistage Program Administrator, Ms. Keema Jones, DFPS Regional Attorney, Ms. Caren Presley, DFPS Assistant District Attorney, Family Division Chief, Ms. Alice Kent, and State Representative Terri Leo-Wilson’s District Director, Ms. Dena Tocco.
Cultivating Hope Together
Our volunteers are roots of a community working together to ensure the children they serve who are experiencing the foster care system due to abuse and neglect do not walk alone. Each year, we celebrate five very special volunteers whose advocacy stands out in certain categories: innovative advocacy, medical advocacy, education advocacy, Rookie of the Year, and our overall Advocate of the Year. Our award winners this year:
Innovative Advocate of the Year – Stacey Gonzalez
Medical Advocate of the Year – Chris Spiller
Education Advocate of the Year – Laurie Nicks
Rookie of the Year – Tracy Williams
Advocate of the Year – Marte Hersey
But- every volunteer is a winner! We asked our Advocate Supervisors to describe every advocate in one meaningful phrase. Each volunteer then received a personalized certificate recognizing their greatest attribute- the unique quality they bring to their advocacy.
A Community That Blooms
We could not fulfill our mission without the support of our community partners. This year we did something different; we honored 2 community partners with the “Collaboration Partner of the Year.”
First, we awarded this very special award to Mr. Herb Juppe, a former CASA advocate volunteer, and huge CASA supporter. Mr. Juppe is the true definition of a Collaboration Partner of the Year, as he works tirelessly to assist us with helping children and families when in need of certain items that at times have helped break barriers to reunification, or help a child thrive.
Our second community partner that defines Collaboration Partner of the Year is Ms. Stephanie Sammons, DFPS Conservatorship Supervisor II. Ms. Sammons ensures every Conservatorship worker under her caseload knows what CASA does and ensures smooth collaboration occurs in every case.
Thank you to Mr. Juppe and Ms. Sammons for being our inaugural Collaboration Partners of the Year!
Thank you, CASA Volunteers
Before the night concluded, we sent our volunteers off with a little something meaningful and special, a CASA windchime. As we handed the gifts one by one to every advocate, we read a note that resonated with the theme of the night:
Thank you for bringing your own unique note to the melody of change as a CASA volunteer advocate.
Just like the delicate tones of a windchime, each sound shaped by movement and presence, your efforts create ripples that resonate far beyond a single moment in our garden.
This windchime symbolizes your journey with us, the lives you’ve touched, and the ongoing impact you make with every step. Each chime is a gentle reminder that your voice, your time, and your heart continue to make a difference in the lives of the children and families we serve.
You are the rhythm that keeps our mission moving forward!
To every CASA advocate, thank you! You are the heart of our mission and the reason we continue to grow.
How You Can Help Us Grow
Want to be a part of this mission? You can also help children experiencing foster care due to abuse and neglect by volunteering as a CASA advocate. Learn more about volunteering here: casagalveston.org/volunteer Or donate today to plant seeds of hope in a child’s life. Casagalveston.org/give
