CASA of Carson City receives corporate donation from Casey Neilon

CARSON CITY, Nev. — CASA of Carson City recently received a donation from Casey Neilon, an accounting firm with offices in Reno and Carson City.

CASA, or Court Appointed Special Advocates, provides court-appointed advocacy for abused and neglected children in child welfare cases, through a network of community volunteers who work with children to ensure their voices are heard during court proceedings.

According to a Nov. 18 press release, the “sizable” Casey Neilon donation will help fulfill wishes of children and families in need of extra support who were referred to the Angel Tree program by the Carson City School District.

Melanie “Emmy” McCormick, guardian ad litem and executive director of CASA of Carson City, said CASA works closely with the school district as teachers and school staff are the biggest front line of defense in spotting a child who may be part of a family that’s struggling financially and or emotionally.

“Many times, one of the first key pieces contributing to a family spiraling to such a degree where their children are removed from their home in child welfare cases is loss of employment or familial support and depression,” McCormick said in the press release. “For each family, we work on collecting the gifts requested and many times, that will entail acquiring warm, winter clothing for the children as part of the collection of presents.”

McCormick added that CASA works closely with organizations like Juvenile Probation and the Ron Wood Family Resource Center so agencies who serve similar populations can join forces and share scarce resources.

CASA’s relationship with Casey Neilon began over three years ago when Darsi Casey, co-founder and managing shareholder of Casey Neilon, offered pro bono consulting and accounting services. Shortly thereafter, she went through the training to become a CASA volunteer.

For her part, Casey said she volunteers with CASA not only to do her small part to help children and families in crisis, but also to learn about how the various systems work in our community and our country, including the juvenile judicial system, the Department of Child and Family Services and all of the ancillary support systems that strive to work together.

“Through this learning process, I hope to make a bigger impact by one day creating a foundation dedicated to furthering the interests of children in crisis,” Casey said.