👗 A teen girl in foster care wants to go to prom. There's no dress, no money for one — and no parent to call. Someone makes a phone call anyway, and a dress shows up. That someone is a trained volunteer from down the street.
Shannon McBride-Bromberg helps run that operation. She's Program Counsel and Program Manager at CASA Lake County — the outfit that puts everyday people next to abused and neglected kids in a Lake County courtroom. Rick Lesser pulls up a chair for the lawyer half; Skoo Walker's on the mics.
A DCFS caseworker might carry 100 cases. A CASA volunteer carries one. That's the whole idea — and it's why the judge asks the volunteer what's really going on.
Then the number lands: 240 volunteers, roughly 400 kids served — and 25 children on a waiting list, waiting for one adult to raise a hand. The question isn't whether the program works. It's whether a county full of capable adults can produce 25 more of them by the August 30 training class.
From there it's everywhere: the hotline call that starts a case, 40 hours of training with no law degree required, teens allowed to stay in the system until 21 with nobody in the stands, bank accounts and driver's licenses, a coats closet in the Vernon Hills office, gift-card trees that lost their Starbucks spots, and a gala at Ravinia on October 30 that pays for the training.
A kid ages toward 21 in a group home.
Who teaches them to open a bank account?
Who drives them to the DMV?
State problem?
System problem?
Or a Lake County problem — with a Lake County answer?
We document. You decide.
🎙 Pete Jansons — with Shannon McBride-Bromberg (CASA Lake County) · Rick Lesser & Skoo Walker on the mics
⏱ TIMESTAMPS
👤 0:00 — A kid with no one in the stands (cold open)
🎧 0:20 — "Tripped over the algorithm": meet Shannon
⚖️ 1:00 — Court Appointed Special Advocate: the judge in Seattle
🧭 3:01 — What an advocate actually does, month to month
📞 4:30 — The hotline call that starts a case
💯 5:45 — 100 cases vs. one: why the judge listens
🎓 6:50 — 40 hours of training, no law degree
🎬 7:50 — "Be the someone" — the CASA video
🔢 10:55 — The numbers: 240 volunteers, 25 kids waiting
🗓️ 11:30 — Next class starts August 30 — $1,200 trains a volunteer
🤝 11:55 — CASA vs. NICASA: two different outfits
💸 12:40 — Did the feds cut CASA's funding? What got restored
🏛️ 14:11 — Where the money really comes from: the DCFS line item
📊 15:10 — What the research shows: faster to permanency
👨⚖️ 16:45 — In the courtroom: the judge questions the volunteer
🧒 18:30 — Who stands with the child: caseworker, GAL, CASA
🕰️ 19:58 — Teens who stay in the system until 21
🪪 20:40 — Bank accounts, state IDs — "things your parents did for you"
📜 21:05 — Guardian ad litem, explained (Rick Lesser)
✍️ 22:40 — How to sign up: the application and the interview
🧥 23:30 — The coats closet and the giving trees
🎻 25:00 — October 30 at Ravinia: the gala that funds the training
👗 25:45 — Mothers Trust and the prom dress
👋 26:30 — Thanks, Shannon
📣 27:01 — A word from our sponsors
🙏 28:50 — Our Patreon supporters — thank you
🎵 COMPANION ALBUM — "Things Your Parents Did For You"
Original songs inspired by today's conversation — "One Kid, One Voice" and the title track play right here in the episode.
🔗 LINKS & MORE
▶ Become a CASA volunteer / donate: https://casalakecounty.com
▶ CASA gala — Oct 30 at Ravinia, tickets: https://e.givesmart.com/events/Pv8/
▶ Support the show: patreon.com/lakeforestpodcast
▶ Newsletter: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/s...
▶ Substack (Rawthentic): https://petejansons.substack.com
▶ Tips / press: [email protected]
▶ Lake Forest, IL (60045)
