THE AUGUST ADVOCATE OF THE MONTH IS:
SHARON DIERINGER
“Not all superheroes wear capes” is the phrase that comes to mind when speaking about the August Advocate of the Month, Sharon Dieringer. Although she would wave off this statement as inaccurate, everyone around her knows how true it is.
Sharon is a CASA of WST board member and volunteer advocate, a member of the board for Hope’s Bridge, and she operates the Hope’s Bridge location in Huntsville. Hope’s Bridge is a free resource which allows community members in need access to furniture, household items, diapers, wipes, formula, and clothing. CASA’s advocates can also utilize this resource on behalf of their assigned children and families. Sharon regularly picks up donated items, delivers items to families, and fills requests from CASAs for items to take on their visits. These volunteer undertakings result in countless hours that Sharon cheerfully and lovingly bestows upon the Huntsville community and beyond.
Sharon has been an advocate with our CASA program for six years. During this time, she has served five families and eleven children. Her current case is one to which she was recently assigned, although it has been open for eight years. Because it is beyond time for the child in this case to achieve permanency, when a new advocate was needed it was obvious that Sharon Dieringer was the person for the job. In the short time she has been assigned, Sharon has read every single document in the file so that she would be fully knowledgeable to make recommendations for this child. With eight years’ worth of records, that is a tremendous amount of reading and research! Sharon has left no stone unturned as she has spoken with the caregiver, the child, therapists, caseworkers, attorneys, and school staff. With children being out for summer break, it has been a challenge to communicate with school personnel, but Sharon was persistent and was able to meet with the campus principal. This meeting allowed her to gain valuable insight and information that she would not have gotten from any other source. Sharon, along with the child’s attorney, is insisting that all parties in this case think outside the box and develop a plan that gives him permanency and closes the case. She is hopeful that this will happen by the end of the year. Whenever it happens, though, it will be due to Sharon’s diligence and commitment to serving this kiddo’s best interests.
We are grateful and blessed to have Sharon Dieringer as one of our CASAs. Mere words are inadequate to fully convey the impact she has on children in foster care—and that impact extends to the children’s caregivers and families, the attorneys and caseworkers, CASA staff and fellow advocates, and the three counties we serve.
Yes, indeed, not all superheroes wear capes!