Hello Friends of Alaska CASA (FAC) Community!  Due to COVID-19, we are sad to announce that we will not be holding our annual in-person quilt auction.  However, we are grateful to be able to present to you a virtual, online quilt auction as well as a raffle quilt!  We will miss your faces dearly but hope you will still be able to participate in our very important annual fundraiser for children in state and tribal custody and foster care.

With this new virtual, online format, we are limiting the auction to 60 quilts from 60 individual quilters who have donated to FAC for 10 or more years.  We treasure and appreciate all our quilter donors and hope to engage you all again in 2021.

Photos of the quilts will be uploaded by November 11, 2020, on the quilt auction site, www.qtego.net/qlink/fac.  Bidding on the quilts will begin on Friday, November 27, at 9:00 a.m., and continue until Saturday, November 28, at 3:00 p.m.  You will have 30 hours to preview and bid on the 60 quilts!  A postage fee of $15 will be added to the price for quilts that need to be mailed from Anchorage to the successful bidder.

While you are waiting for the quilt auction to begin, you can buy a chance to win this beautiful quilt “Northern Lights of Alaska”.  This quilt is queen sized (86×96) and was expertly made by Sharon Hillstrom and superbly machine quilted by Melanie Brown.

Tickets by books of 5 for $20 are highly encouraged (although individual tickets for $5 each are also available).  A photocopy of the ticket stubs will be emailed to purchasers each Sunday evening.

Individual Ticket $5.00 USDBook of 5 Tickets $20.00 USD

Please note, in accordance with Alaska gaming law, we must limit raffle tickets to Alaska residents.  Raffle tickets can be purchased from now until 12:00 noon on Saturday, November 28, 2020, or until such time as Alaska Gaming temporary guidance which allows online sales should expire. The winning ticket will be drawn on Saturday, November 28, at 3:00 p.m. live on Facebook!  The winning ticket holder will be notified by telephone.

Stay tuned for upcoming posts for our virtual auction which will take place November 27 and 28!

Friends of Alaska CASA (FAC) is pleased to offer travel scholarships to its board members and CASA volunteers to attend training and other events. This is an important part of our mission to build and maintain the competency of those supporting our CASA programs. In order to ensure the funds are used in the most responsible way possible and to comply with federal guidelines for nonprofit organizations, the following polices apply for use of FAC travel funds.

For more information on the new travel policy and procedures, please see the attached FAC Travel Policy.

Amazon Smile is a simple and automatic way for a person to support Friends of Alaska CASA (FAC) every time that he/she shops using Amazon, at no cost to the individual. FAC is a registered public charitable organization with AmazonSmile. When an individual shops at AmazonSmile, he/she will see the same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com with the added bonus that Amazon will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to FAC.>> Read More

By Gloria O’Neil

As a new member of the National CASA Board of Trustees, I am honored to bring a tribal perspective to one of the greatest issues facing Alaska Native people: the crisis in child protection. Despite efforts by the state court system and child protective services agencies, disproportionality and disparity in child protective custody for Alaska Native children have persisted and intensified over the past thirty years. We must do better. This is the time to think comprehensively, to take our experiences and the lessons we have learned and make systemic change to improve outcomes for Alaska Native children.>> Read More