Center for Children and Families

On this episode, we talked with Anna Grimmett, a member of the executive team at the Center for Children and Families. We discussed our community partnership and how they promote safe environments for children through advocacy, counseling, education, and prevention. 

Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):

Welcome back to another episode of the Live Better Podcast by Centric Federal Credit Union. I'm your host and Centric's Social Media and Marketing Specialist Emma Banes. I'm so excited that you're here today. Every month we post a new episode where I'm joined by a guest to chat about all things living better in finances. Subscribe today so that you never miss an episode. Today we are joined by Anna Grimmett, who is an executive for the Center for Children and Families to chat about our community partnership and how they are positively influencing our community. Well, welcome Anna, and I'm super glad that you're here today. Before we get started, I just wanna kind of to talk about our partnership for our listeners who may not know. So our Live Better Team, which is managed here by Kelly Gilliam, we have partnered with the Center for Families and Children, and we kind of come in and provide financial education workshops.

Speaker 1 (00:57):

And I've actually been able to be a part of several of those and sit in on them and they've been really awesome. And I think it's, it's good, especially in times like today where everything is expensive and people are really struggling, that we've kind of been able to go in and, and provide some workshops to help people live better, help people learn more about saving. And so we've been partnered up for some time now and I think it's just been really awesome. So that's a little bit about that. And now if you don't mind, will you tell us just a little bit about who you are and what you do at the Center for Children and Families?

Speaker 2 (01:35):

Well thank you Emma for having me here today. I do wanna say thank you to the credit union because you guys have really supported our staff. Uh, what we do is really hard work in the community. Um, we advocate, um, and counsel children that have been abused. And so anyway that we can take care of our staff and help them live better, um, is really helpful. Um, I am an executive at the center. I, am the CFO, so I'm handling all the finances and I also help a little bit with marketing and I love what I do. Um, I'm a mom and a wife. We have three children and live in Choudrant. And so I see the value of the work that we do in the community to help children and families.

Speaker 1 (02:21):

That's really awesome. That's good. Um, so for those listening who may not know, and I know you kind of touched on it a little bit, but can you go in a little more depth and tell us exactly what this organization does for children?

Speaker 2 (02:34):

Yeah, so we offer a variety of services, counseling and advocacy services. Most people have heard of our CASA program. Um, that's really well known in the community and that's one of our divisions. Um, we also have a huge division that offers different types of counseling for kids that have gone through traumatic events or have been neglected, or even kids that are struggling with mental illness. Uh, we saw in the pandemic that so many kids were struggling and so we can come in and help. Um, we also have a medication management clinic for children that need medical intervention. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Uh, so we have a lot going on and our, our goal is just to promote a safe and healthy environment for children.

Speaker 1 (03:16):

That's awesome. And, um, I think, um, an organization like y'all's is so important because everyone knows that there are children that need help, but everyone doesn't necessarily know how to help or where to go or ways to volunteer. So I think that's really good that y'all are spreading awareness about that. Um, I did have a question. So if someone knew of a child who could benefit from y'all services, how would they go about? Um, or what would the process look like to get that child help? Sure.

Speaker 2 (03:48):

So you can make a referral on our website. It's www.standforhope.org. So if you have a child that's struggling with any kind of mental health struggle, whether that's depression or anxiety, um, even suicidal ideations, like we, you can make a referral on our website and we can set them up with a therapist. Um, we also have, um, a prevention part of our company. So if you know of a church or your book club, um, any kind of civic organization that you would like for us to train on how to prevent child abuse, we can also provide that service and you can make that request on our website as well.

Speaker 1 (04:29):

Okay, That's really good to know. Um, have y'all ever done work in the school system or anything like that? I was wondering cuz I used to be a teacher and um, I didn't live in this parish at that time, but I mean an organization like this would've been extremely helpful when I was a teacher.

Speaker 2 (04:44):

Yes, we did. We actually this year before school started when they have all the pre-service trainings mm-hmm. And stuff for teachers. Um, our prevention specialists went in and trained, I think it was most of Washington Hall Parish. Oh, that's awesome. Um, on signs of child abuse and neglect and if a child discloses how to handle that. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I mean there's a lot to that. Um, so yeah, we're trying to get in. We would love to go to any school at any time. So give us a call. Yeah. Our number is 3 1 8 3 9 8 0 9 4 5 if you'd like us to come.

Speaker 1 (05:17):

Oh, that's awesome. Yeah. Um, so I know you kind of mentioned CASA a little bit, but what, what volunteer opportunities do y'all have?

Speaker 2 (05:27):

Yeah, so CASA is constantly looking for volunteers. CASA is a program, it stands for court appointed special advocate and we train community members to speak up for children that have been abused and neglected and are in the foster care system. So what's happened is there's so many kids that are coming through this system, it's easy for them to get missed and to be overlooked cuz there's so many so CASA's in place to give each child a volunteer. So someone in the community that can speak up for them. Um, and it looks like sometimes it's two to eight hours a month. A lot of people are like, that sounds like a huge commitment, two to eight hours a month. We ask that you see the child face to face once a month, that you get to know their teachers and their relatives and their caseworker.

Speaker 2 (06:13):

And then when it's time for court, you submit a report to the judge that says, Hey, this is what I recommend as a community member speaking up for this child. Um, it sounds huge and it is, the impact of CASA is huge for our community, but we have support in place. Um, we actually have a training class coming up in January. We have over a hundred kids right now that need casas. So if you're interested in being a casa, give us a call. Um, again, we can come to your church to talk about CASA to recruit. Um, that's always something that we're looking at doing, so we're trying to encourage people start the new year off. Right, right. Um, by advocating for a child.

Speaker 1 (06:55):

That's awesome. I I'm glad you talked about that because I'd heard of CASA before. Um, a friend of my mom's actually was a CASA volunteer when I was a lot younger and I kind of saw what she did a little bit and um, so I knew a little bit about it, but it as something that I'm even interested in, like it seems like you really become an advocate for that child when they probably don't have one. Yeah. And um, I think that that's really

Speaker 2 (07:20):

Awesome. Yeah. And we say like our casa volunteers are the eyes and ears for the judge. Like put yourself in the judge's seat. Can you imagine having to make a decision for a child that you literally just read about them on a piece of paper, you know,

Speaker 1 (07:35):

And don't really know what going

Speaker 2 (07:36):

On and don't really know. So the CASA volunteer was actually, um, designed by a judge because he was like, Hey, I'm not getting enough information. And so I need community members. I need objective people that don't have some kind of, you know, pull in one way or the other to speak up for these kids. So it's a huge, huge program that we're really proud of and it's the flagship program of our company. It actually started with Casa and the rest of it grew around the needs that we saw with CASA children.

Speaker 1 (08:07):

That's really good. That is. Um, so what community events do y'all have? Kind of what do you do yearly and what do you have going on right now? Yeah,

Speaker 2 (08:16):

So we are gearing up for Christmas. Um, so this started a few years ago where our staff was really struggling at Christmas time as they were preparing for time with their families and buying gifts. And they realized, man, some of these clients that we have aren't gonna get anything. And so we reached out to a store, um, in Monroe and they were like, well, we'll give, we'll donate soccer balls. And so over the years it's just evolved into this massive Christmas project. We always joke that our office turns into like Santa's workshop. Um, but what we do is we have community sponsors, um, actually sponsor a wishlist for children. So each of our children that we serve fills out a wishlist. Um, and then we have community sponsors, um, fulfill that. And what's, what I'm really proud of with our agency is we have our community sponsors bring that to our office and then we check it in, put it in a black bag, and then we give it back to the families because part of what makes a gift important is who it's from. Right. And so we empower the family to say, Hey, this is from grandma or this is from um, whoever. And that really makes a difference.

Speaker 1 (09:27):

Oh, I bet.

Speaker 2 (09:28):

And so it's a great time for our staff. I mean, we work so hard during this time, but um, it's just rewarding.

Speaker 1 (09:35):

I can imagine that it would be. Um, so what about the Stuff a Bus? I've heard a little bit about that. Can you tell me and our listeners what that is about?

Speaker 2 (09:46):

Sure. So Stuff a Bus is an event that the radio people put on for us. Um, and it's basically just to bring, just to bring toys for our kids. So a lot of our kids might not meet the deadline for wishlist, so we might have kids come in on December 20th that aren't gonna get anything. So Stuff a Bus helps with that. Um, I was gonna share a story with you about a client that the Christmas Project and Stuff a Bus had a huge impact on. Um, so we had a child that was, um, placed with her grandmother unexpectedly. Her grandmother, you know, wasn't planning on that and she did not have the means to provide for her for Christmas. And so we had her fill out a wishlist and do all the things. And um, what was really cool is when we took it back to the grandmother, just tears because she had no idea.

Speaker 2 (10:40):

To the extent that this was gonna happen. And so we, the sponsor and the community provided like multiple outfits for this little girl. Like everything on her wishlist, her dream toy. Um, but what I loved as a mama, you know, seeing that grandmother's relief in her eyes is just huge. And then I love the next thing that happened is when our, um, it was actually our CASA advocate went back out in January to see this child. She was like, Look at what Nana got me. You know, and so that was just, that's a beautiful story of what we want it to be. We want to come in and empower families and help families be better. Um, and so it was just so rewarding and that's what we get to do times a thousand. We usually help about a thousand children, um, at this time of year. So it's just, it's an awesome place to work and to be a part of it.

Speaker 1 (11:35):

Oh, it really sounds like it. And I can imagine too, I mean all the ways that members of the community can get involved. I mean yeah. When you have a whole parish of people coming together to benefit children and their families who need help, I mean that's, that's a big thing. That's Yeah. The world definitely needs more of that. That

Speaker 2 (11:53):

Yeah. And there's multiple ways to get involved. So we talked about casa volunteering, Um, so you can call to, um, sign up to be a volunteer or get more information. Um, we are also always looking for community partners. So like you guys are a community partner, like how to bring awareness. Um, if you own a company and you want to do a day that's like a fundraiser for our organization. That's really helpful too because all throughout the year kids need school supplies or uniforms and we can, we can use those funds for that. Um, and like I said earlier, prevention, we wanna get out, um, and educate people on this really uncomfortable topic. Right. And so the more we can do that, the better.

Speaker 1 (12:37):

That's awesome. I love what y'all are doing. I believe in what y'all are doing. I think it is just the most wonderful thing. Um, is there anything else that you wanted to add? I think we touched on just about everything. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (12:49):

I would say just visit our website. So again, that's www.standforhope.org or call us at (318) 398-0945 and just tell us what you're interested in doing and we will set you up with someone.

Speaker 1 (13:03):

Awesome. Thank you so much for being here today. Thank you.

Speaker 2 (13:06):

I appreciate it.

Speaker 1 (13:08):

Thank you so much, Anna, for being here today. I hope all of our listeners were able to learn a little bit about how Centric is partnered with the Center for Children and Families and how they are impacting our community. Thank you for listening to our podcast and tune back in next month for another episode of the Live Better Podcast by Centric Federal Credit Union. Don't forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform and to ensure you never miss out on helpful tips like us on Facebook at Cent Federal Credit Union and find us at MyCentric on Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and YouTube. You can find information about today's topic, our monthly blog and more. At mycentric.org Centric is federally insured by the NCUA.