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CACCT History
The Children’s Advocacy Center of Central Texas began its
existence in 1997. George Moffatt, a Bell County Sheriff’s
Office investigator recognized the need for a child-friendly interview
room where he could interview his young victims. A space in the
Juvenile Detention Center was donated for this purpose. Donations
of toys and furniture continued and the room was complete. The
vision continued to grow and eventually with the help of a Bell County
Attorney’s investigator, Jack Mazzucca, and various dedicated
Board members, the Children’s Advocacy Center of Central Texas
was created. In 1998, Incorporation was completed, membership to
Children’s Advocacy Centers of Texas was obtained and start-up
funds secured. An Executive Director was hired and began work in
early January 1999. The center began MDT Team meetings to staff
and discuss child abuse cases in November 1998, and began interviewing
victims in the new interview room mid January 1999. In the first
year of operation, the center provided collaborative services to 189
children. In 2006 it is expected the center may provide services
to up to 500 children. The staff and budget has grown each year
with the support of the community.
CASA History
In 1977, a Judge in Seattle, Washington, David Soukoff,
was making permanent, life altering decisions on where to place
children in foster care. He did not feel that he could
appropriately make informed decisions because he did not have enough
information to do so. He thought it would be nice to have a
neutral party looking in on each case to help him make those
decisions. Judge Soukoff was the founder of the CASA, Court
Appointed Special Advocates, organization. CASA’s, or CASA
volunteers are adults in the community that are trained to go to court
and advocate for abused and neglected children. They are trained
to be a voice for abused and neglected children in court.
CASA of Bell County was incorporated in
1997. CASA of Bell County was established when a group of
concerned citizens and judges felt children in foster care needed to be
advocated for in the court system. The first CASA case in Bell
County was appointed in 1998.
In February 2005, a dedicated group of
citizens in Coryell County recognized the need for a CASA
program. Quickly, the initial organizational meeting took place,
with judicial approval shortly following. The mission was
headed by a local woman, Laura White, who commits much of her time to
children’s and charitable causes and Bill Wheeless, a trained
CASA who moved to the area from Cross Timbers, Texas. In March
2005, The Children’s Advocacy Center of Central Texas, Inc.
agreed to accept the responsibility of incorporating CASA of Coryell
County as a new program.
In June of 2006, after the Coryell CASA
program was in full operation, the boards of CACCT and CASA of Bell
County decided to merge together under The Children’s Advocacy
Center of Central Texas, Inc. to form one organization addressing the
needs of child victims of abuse and neglect. This newly formed
umbrella agency held a commitment to abused and neglected children in
Bell and Coryell counties. With the programs coming together it
was felt that more children would be positively impacted by advocacy of
the organization.
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