About
It all started in 1995 when Tucson created the nonprofit Arizona Council CASA, Inc. (ACCI). Their goal was to raise funds to distribute for unfunded needs of wards of the courts and their CASAs around the state through a county chapter system. In 2001 Barbara Polk saw a need to support the CASA program and the volunteers who work with the abused, neglected, and abandoned children in Yavapai County. She applied and was accepted into the ACCI that same year to form the Yavapai chapter.
In 2003 Barbara Polk, Pat Williamson, Dottie Strate, and Max Bell applied to the Corporation Commission and IRS for the Yavapai Chapter to have its own 501c(3) status. With the approval of their application, Yavapai CASA for Kids Foundation (YC4KF) was born.
YC4KF continues to grow and is entirely funded through donations by individuals, supported by the Arizona Foster Care Charitable Tax Credit, local businesses, and foundations. There are few administrative costs associated with the organization so nearly all of the funds received are used in support of foster children in Yavapai County.
The first purpose of YC4KF was to provide grants to fund the unmet needs of children in foster care in Yavapai County. Since then the Foundation has expanded to include many other types of services such as a family visitation center, training, and transportation expenses for CASAs. We provide emergency clothing cards, bi-annual clothing supplements, Christmas gifts, and support for activities for foster youth to name a few.
Eleven Arizona counties have CASA support councils, and YC4KF is an active member of the Arizona CASA Support Councils coalition and is a member of the National CASA Organization.