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Volunteer Spotlight: Emily Bost

Emily Bost may be small in stature, but she has one of the biggest hearts out there. From registered nurse to stay-at-home mom to volunteer manager to ordained deacon, Emily has held a variety of positions throughout the years. Regardless of title, they all had one thing in common – helping others.

As a native Arkansan, Emily met her husband Jim at a hospital in Little Rock decades ago. She, an R.N., heard a child’s cry as she walked through a pediatric wing and found Jim, a medical student, struggling with a scared child. She stepped in and magically calmed the little girl. That special power, the intuition and compassion, carried over when Emily and Jim started their own family and opened their home to foster children years later.

Given that history, it’s not surprising Emily is celebrating her sixth year as a CASA volunteer. Over those years, Emily has worked six cases and positively impacted the lives of eight kids. She goes above and beyond in her service. While it is required for an advocate to visit their CASA kids once a month, Emily tries to visit at least once a week. Because the littles on her cases are normally babies and toddlers, they can’t just tell Emily what’s wrong. She has to know by watching body language and learning patterns of behavior and speaking to all parties. Those babies don’t use words, but she knows what they want and need. And, Emily is there to convey that to the judge.

When asked what Emily tells someone who is considering becoming a CASA, she said “she tells people how hard it can be. How rewarding too, but you have to be willing to make the best decision for a child even when it’s difficult. When you have to tell the judge that a mom and dad aren’t capable of being good parents to a child, it tears your heart. But, I don’t feel I’ve made a wrong decision yet.”

Those babies who are thriving in their forever homes don’t either, Emily. Thank you for being their voice.