After 30 years of providing advocacy to thousands of children in foster care, Savannah CASA is evolving to serve more families and children in crisis. Under the new name Brightside Child & Family Advocacy, they will provide a wide range of services aiming to prevent child abuse and neglect in Chatham County.

Brightside Child & Family Advocacy's Savannah CASA program will continue its high quality and personalized advocacy for children in foster care. With nearly 200 trained volunteers, the Savannah CASA program will ensure that children in our community who have experienced abuse and neglect have a committed advocate helping to change their stories.

This Valentine's Day, Cupid and CASA have teamed up to show more love to children in foster care with the opening of The Bright House on Monday, February 14, 2022, at 12 PM. This supervised visitation and family support center located at 705 Harmon Street, Savannah, GA 31401, is key to supporting families who strive for a better life. In a warm, home-like environment, parents will be assisted in developing healthy relationships with their children while participating in court-mandated supervised visitations. The Bright House will support families to heal and grow despite the many barriers that arise from difficult circumstances.

While a child is in foster care, quality supervised visitation is crucial to strengthening parent-child attachments and decreasing the sense of abandonment that children experience. Family visitation is linked to positive outcomes, including improving a child's well-being, less time in out-of-home care, and faster reunification.

Executive Director Kate Blair highlights that "Chatham County has one of the largest populations of children in foster care outside of Greater Atlanta with 102 children entering foster care last year and an average daily count of 360 children. However, Chatham County does not have a visitation center to serve those children. I am so honored that our organization can provide a positive solution for local families."

For more information about Brightside Child and Family Advocacy, home to Savannah CASA and The Bright House, please visit www.brightsideadvocacy.org.