CASA Sleuthing Reunites Boy With Sisters

The pages lay strewn before him on his living room floor. Mounds of documents – he pored over every detail promising to leave no stone unturned.

And then, there it was. On one sheet, buried deep in the volumes, was the key to Brady’s future.

Just a few short years earlier, Brady’s hope for bright future seemed dashed when his pre-adoptive parents abruptly ended the process. The 14-year-old was crushed and had never felt more abandoned or lonely.

There was one person in Brady’s life, though, who wasn’t willing to turn his back on him. Dave Martins had been Brady’s CASA – or Court Appointed Special Advocate – for over a year.

And Dave was determined to find another even brighter path for the freckled teen.

“Thanks to his CASA’s perseverance, Brady now spends his days surrounded by his aunt and uncle, two sisters, and other family.”

Buried in Brady’s case file that day, Dave had found something all the others had missed – an aunt and uncle who had long ago adopted Brady’s two sisters.

In the chaos of his childhood and an overburdened child welfare system, Brady had gotten separated from his two sisters in his first year in foster care. His extended family had lost track of him and the agency managing his case lost track of his extended family.

Dave knew that his sleuthing that day would change the teen’s life forever – and for good.

When social workers had given up, Dave just wouldn’t give in. Today thanks to his CASA’s perseverance, Brady now spends his days surrounded by his aunt and uncle, two sisters, and other family.

This new safe, stable, and loving home just might not have been, if not for the advocacy, support, and caring of Brady’s CASA Dave.

(Brady’s name has been changed for privacy purposes. His story is real, and so is the impact that Dave, his CASA has had on his life.)