When Larry Henry retired, he was looking for a challenge that took him out of management and put him in the trenches.
Henry had worked in leadership positions at various cultural organizations and nonprofits up and down the East Coast, including an eight-year stint as director of museums for Colonial Williamsburg.
He had volunteered plenty as well, but was not content to stuff envelopes in this next stage of life.
“I wanted to do something that I thought would make a difference. I wanted to do something that would push me out of my comfort zone,” he said.
Two years ago, he found Colonial Court Appointed Special Advocates and a volunteer opportunity that proved to be the demanding undertaking he was seeking.
As a CASA, Henry is tasked with researching the ins and outs of cases going before a judge in juvenile and domestic relations court. After lengthy training and extensive background checks, CASAs are given access to interview the child or children involved, parents, teachers, pediatrician and any other pertinent party.
“We go out and we talk to everyone. This is where we become investigative journalists in a way,” he said.
The fruit of the labor is a report given to the judge at each hearing throughout the process, objectively detailing facts and conversations and then offering an assessment.
Henry views the organization as a volunteer partnership, where rather than serving as the support staff to augment professionals, the volunteers are the professionals driving the institution.
“I had spent my whole career as a manager. I wanted to spend my time where the impact of this organization was going to be made,” he said.
Sometimes, hearing the circumstances of a case, Henry is leery to jump in. The situation might be intimidating to walk into as an outsider, or even disturbing.
“Every time I’ve felt that way, I’ve felt different after I’ve met the kid. … You always go into these situations knowing the kids are all innocent,” he said.
After leading an admittedly sheltered, middle-class life, the world he must access as a CASA can be a shock. What once might have been the subject of charged debate or a faceless news article becomes personal to Henry.
“My experience has been that the opportunity to try to improve the lives of these kids overcomes [differences],” he said. “A lot of that becomes circumstantial.”
With every new case, Henry is surprised he is strong enough to meet the challenge, but finds his reward in the children whose lives he hopes to shape for the better.
He remembers an exceptional 12-year-old child, the oldest of four living in one home. The boy functioned as the parent for his siblings, cooking them dinner, and was the one to rescue them when their apartment caught on fire.
Henry did not just want to give him the means to get through high school graduation – he wanted to give him the chance to be a child.
In those cases, the word “advocate” can take on a multitude of meanings, Henry said, striving to give all youth the best shot at healthy, fulfilling lives.
He does have the luxury of focusing on one or two cases at a time. The work involved in each might range from two to 20 hours a month, and cases can last up to a 18 months, but CASAs are not juggling the workload of a full-time caseworker.
There is also a power and a freedom that comes with being a volunteer, Henry said. His job is not on the line if he disagrees with a supervisor, and he cannot be docked pay if he does not mirror the perspective of a social worker or attorney.
Instead, Henry is motivated by a sense of compassion and humanity and service to a person who might not have anyone else.
“You, inevitably in this process, become involved with this child on a human level,” he said.
He submits that view to the judge, free from expert paradigm, and was not expecting to find his opinion often falls in line with the court’s ruling.
“I just tell him what I think. I don’t wear a robe, so in some sense it doesn’t matter what I think,” Henry said.
But he has learned his perspective does add a valuable component to the judicial dialogue, that — even as a volunteer — his voice is heard, and through him, the needs of a child.
CASA is currently accepting volunteers for the next round of training, set to start in January. For more information, visit its website or call 229-3306.
