Wilson A. Rivera Tom Brooks, AKIMA program manager, reaches for another toy while packing for pick up by a representative from the Children’s Advocacy Center of Georgia. AKIMA Infrastructure Services employees held a toy drive starting Dec. 1 to support the Children’s Advocacy Center of Georgia which manages the Court Appointed Special Advocates program.

CASA representatives are volunteers trained to assist children who have been removed from their homes, where the parents have lost custody of their children through the court system and are placed in foster care or with relatives. Any time a child makes an allegation about abuse, physical or sexual, these representatives are the advocate for the child through the criminal and forensics process, said April Zahner, development coordinator for child enrichment.

The toys collected will go to children in foster care in need of gifts for the holiday season. Unwrapped toys will be given to the care givers and children will receive a wrapped toy from Santa Claus during a scheduled Christmas party. Any remaining toys will go to the Salvation Army.

“It’s kind of our responsibility to put a smile on their face,” said Tom Brooks, program manager with AKIMA. “Many are in shelters or a foster home and it’s not the same as home.”

It’s a positive not only by donations, but also from the volunteers, said Zahner. The last CASA training held, about half were members who volunteered through recruitment from the post.

The impact of these toy donations from on-post organization like AKIMA are just phenomenal, said Zahner.