Community Corner

'Critical' Need for Hillsborough's Guardian ad Litem Program, Volunteers Sought

The need is "critical" to grow the ranks of the Hillsborough County Guardian ad Litem program, according to recruiters Rene Vojnovic and Mindy Barnes, speaking in Greater Brandon on Aug. 5.

 

At the 10th Annual Back-to-School Festival at the Campo Family YMCA on Aug. 5, recruiters Rene Vojnovic and Mindy Barnes spoke about the "critical" need for Hilsborough County residents to step up to the plate for the Florida Guardian ad Litem Program.

"Currently there are 2,954 children removed from their homes due to abuse and neglect," Vojnovic said. "For each one of them to have a guardian ad litem we need an additional 1,100 volunteers."

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The need, then, is "critical," Vojnovic added, and her job is to recruit local volunteers for training "to provide independent representation of the best interests of children in court proceedings," as the volunteer package notes.

"We need everyday people from all walks of life," Vojnovic said. "The children need you so badly."

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Vojnovic said she became a recruiter for the program after becoming a guardian ad litem herself, after working in child care for years.

"When I was working in a group home there would be children waiting there for someone to walk up to them and say, 'Hi, I'm your guardian ad litem,' " she noted. "When that wouldn't happen, I heard a child say, 'I'm not even good enough for a guardian ad litem."

That can't happen, but it does, and that's why Vojnovi and Barnes are busy recruiting for volunteers.

"These children are humans," Vojnovic said. "They're not pets. It's great to help animals [up for adoption and in need of foster homes] but it's important to help children."

Barnes said the benefits of working for the guardian ad litem program measures up favorably against anything else she might spend her time doing.

"You go to work every day and you feel great about what you're doing, and you can't say that about every job," she said.

Especially fulfilling this month is the upcoming graduation of 48 additional guardian ad litem volunteers from a training program held at Nativity Catholic Church and school.

"On August 14 we graduate 48 new guardians," Barnes said.

But more are needed as the need for court proceedings to help straighten out the lives of children grows.

"It's the economy," Vojnovic said. "People have stressors and that can turn into substance, drug and alcohol, abuse and that can result in child abuse. I believe this is what happens because from January to April of this year we had the same number of kids coming into the system as we did in all of 2011."

Vollunteers ages 21 and over are sought, "and you don't have to have a law degree," Vojnovic stressed.

Guardians visit once and month and attend court hearings typically once every three to six months, she said.

Guardians, Vojnovic added, are "the eyes and the ears of the court."

To learn more about the program and requirements and training to become a guardian ad litem, visit GALtampa.org.


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