Meet Board Member Dallas Pender. She grew up in Odessa, Texas, and has lived in Billings for 10 years. Dallas was previously a member of both the Billings Junior League and the Yellowstone Valley Medical Society Alliance, where she actively contributed to her community. Professionally, she works for Rock Creek Teletherapy, offering speech and language therapy via teletherapy to schools in rural areas of Montana, helping bridge the gap in services for underserved communities. In her free time, Dallas enjoys a variety of outdoor activities such as running, skiing (both downhill and cross-country), hiking, and mountain biking. She also loves to travel and explore new places. Family is important to her, and she has a daughter currently attending college in Tennessee, a son studying at Rocky Mountain College, and two dogs that keep her company at home.
Prior to moving to Billings in 2015, she had heard of CASA, but incorrectly assumed that serving as a “court appointed special advocate” would require a background in a law profession. As she started making friends in the Billings community, she realized that several were involved with the local CASA organization, as advocates or board members, with one serving in both roles! Not a single one of these folks had a background in law, rather, they had diverse experiences in accounting, healthcare, business, education, and real estate. It seemed that the only requirement for CASA involvement was to have a heart for service! After attending a CASA Underground dinner, she learned what an important mission this extraordinary organization strives to fulfill.
She joined the CASA Board of Directors in 2020 after a good friend asked her if she would be interested in serving CASA in that capacity. Since then, she has had the privilege of serving as the president of the board for three years, an opportunity that allowed her to more fully appreciate the dedication and hard work of the CASA staff, peer coordinators, and advocates. She has been a part of various volunteer organizations in the past, but never one that provides the kind of high-level training and support that CASA does. Dallas finds the generosity of the volunteers and donors truly inspiring!
The Executive Director always begins the Board of Directors meetings with a “CASA Moment,” which is often a short story about a successful family reunification that occurred with the help of one of our Advocates. One story that stood out to Dallas involved a young child who had not attended school regularly until he was in foster care. The child was assigned a CASA, and the CASA quickly identified that there were several educational concerns to be addressed, including a need for speech therapy. Working with the foster parents and school, the CASA was able to secure beneficial services for the child. As a speech-language pathologist, she was struck by the positive impact this one thing would have in the life of this child. With improved communication skills, this child would have the tools needed for self-advocacy and success in the future.
It is just amazing to Dallas to think of the countless ways that our Advocates are able to make a real difference in the lives of children who have been put in complicated and difficult situations, through no fault of their own. She would strongly encourage anyone to become more involved in CASA, as an Advocate, Board member, or donor. Another great way to support CASA is to spread the word about the need for our volunteer services in the community, and that everyday citizens can help make a significant difference in the life of an abused or neglected child who might otherwise slip through the cracks. Many people have misconceptions about what CASA does, so her advice is to talk it up and invite friends to one of our events, such as Coffee with CASA or the famous 0.5K Run.
