CASA

Local KSHB-TV anchor and reporter Gabriella Pagan suddenly disappeared from television last year. She told Up To Date she had to leave her career in journalism to confront childhood trauma and abuse in her past. That’s how she became an advocate for kids in Jackson County’s Family Court system.

Facing a budget shortfall in 2020, Missouri cut 200 jobs at the Department of Social Services including positions in the division overseeing abused and neglected children.

Schools across Kansas City were able to provide meals for thousands of children during the pandemic, but districts fear that federal help will end soon. Plus, how early pandemic layoffs in Missouri’s Department of Social Services impacted the care of abused and neglected children.

Trained advocates provide support and resources for young Kansans about to face life on their own.

Glickman, who also served as U.S. secretary of agriculture, tells stories from his new memoir, and the organization helping Kansas teens aging out of the state foster care system.

Debbie Bass hopes her story will inspire others to support or become advocates for children in conditions like those she experienced.

Missouri is just one of 47 states considering changes to their voting laws; and a Kansas City woman's story reveals the effect caring adults can have on an abused and neglected child.