People around the world pitch in together the Tuesday after Thanksgiving for #GivingTuesday, a day that encourages generosity for communities and their local charities, as well as families and people in need.
In Lima, CASA of Allen and Putnam Counties put on their #givingCASAday initiative to educate people on how they provide court advocacy for children, and how people can help. Those with the organization say that help from the outside is key in doing their job for the counties they serve.
"The two main things that we're always looking for are funding - it takes money to recruit, train, and support volunteers to be able to serve those children - and it also takes volunteers," said Amy Weichart-Bayliff, Program Manager for CASA of Allen and Putnam Counties. "We have about 150 kids that will be served this year, we need more advocates to be able to serve the children in our local area."
And in Cridersville, Fassett Farm held an open house to show off their Equestrian Therapy Program, something that they say is a good chance for people to better understand what exactly the program does for people with disabilities.
"We’ve been here over 32 years, so it’s amazing many people know what we do, but there’s a lot that don’t specifically understand what we do - we give therapeutic horseback riding lessons for the disabled, and today people can come out and see what it is that we do, and how their donations stay right here in our own community," said Michele Sabol, Executive Director for the Equestrian Therapy Program.
Just like CASA, the Equestrian Therapy Program does rely on donations and volunteer help to continue their work.
"It’s neat that people can come and see everything that they would do for us here, and that could be whatever they think that they can offer us, we'll take it," said Sonya Carver, Farm Manager.
For more information on CASA, you can visit their Facebook page (CASA of Allen & Putnam Counties) or their website at http://casaoflima.org.
Equestrian Therapy Program: www.etpfarm.org, call (419) 657-2700
