When asked how she felt about CASA receiving a coveted Piñon Award from the Santa Fe Community Foundation, Janice Quinn, CASA's executive director, said she was stoked.

And stoked she should be.

CASA — Court Appointed Special Advocates — is a Santa Fe-based nonprofit organization that addresses one of the horrors of our society: child abuse.

The problem of child abuse is gargantuan. In 2001, 1,700 New Mexican children were removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect. Last year, the number soared to 2,500.

Quinn said 250 abused children in the First Judicial District, the area served by CASA, were removed from their homes last year and placed in foster care.

Most people aren't aware of the abuse.

"When I speak to groups, I tell them, 'Prepared to be depressed,' " Quinn said. "People come up to me afterwards and say, 'I had no idea — what can I do?' Right away, I talk to them about becoming a CASA volunteer."

Without adequate government funding to address the problem, it's up to nonprofit agencies like CASA to help battered children.

"State agency social workers are severely overworked, carrying up to 20 cases. And each case entails communicating with over 35 people," Quinn said. "This is where we help — by providing trained volunteers who have the luxury of working on just one or two cases."

CASA has 80 unpaid, court-appointed volunteers, who represent the interests of abused children.

Volunteers, after being carefully screened, receive 30 hours of initial training and attend an ongoing series of educational programs.

Adair Waldenberg, a retired economist, became a volunteer in April.

"As a volunteer, I'm in the center of things," Waldenberg said. "We try to ensure that all parties — the foster parents, the social workers, the parents — are aware of the children's needs."

On her first case, Waldenberg said, she "has pushed to get a child in school, encouraged parents to get into counseling, met regularly with the child and foster parents and overall tried to ensure that everyone working on the case knows what's going on."

Like all volunteers, Waldenberg puts in 10-15 hours a week with no reimbursement. Volunteers even have to pay for their own gasoline.

Waldenberg said she works as a volunteer because she believes "it makes a difference in a child's life and children are our future."

Anthony Gonzalez was in foster care with a CASA volunteer for three years.

"It was between my being 15 and 18," Gonzalez said. "I had been getting into trouble, running away and things like that. My CASA helped me by being a role model.

"He taught me to be happy about life and live every day good. Without my CASA, I probably would have gotten into a lot of trouble."

By ensuring the children are cared for and not lost in the system, children with a CASA volunteer receive better services, have fewer foster-care changes and, maybe most importantly, 95 percent of the children find a permanent home.

"The problem of abuse is severe and increases every year," Quinn said. "Sometimes I think we can't make a difference, but then I realize we're making a difference one child at time. We just have to take it one case at a time."

One reason Quinn sometimes despairs of making a difference is the cyclical nature of abuse.

She said approximately 40 percent of adults who were abused grow into abusive adults.

Child abuse, a problem that crosses economic and racial lines, can be positively addressed by everyone in the community.

Everyone, Quinn said, has a legal responsibility to report suspected child abuse. The number to call is 1-800-797-3260.

The 2008 Piñon Awards ceremony will be at 6 p.m. Oct. 7 at the Lensic, Santa Fe's Performing Arts Center.

Four nonprofits, plus CASA, will be recognized for outstanding service to Northern New Mexico communities. The other recipients of the Piñon Award are: Wise Fool New Mexico, WildEarth Guardians, Girls Inc. of Santa Fe, and Santa Fe Rape Crisis and Trauma Treatment Center.

The ceremony is free and open to the public. María Benítez, founder and director of María Benítez Teatro Flamenco and the Institute for Spanish Arts, will be the master of ceremonies.

"I'm so excited for our program and volunteers to be recognized," Quinn said. "For many years, CASA was one of Santa Fe's best kept secrets. This is a wonderful honor."