Celeste and Rebecca Prather are a mother/daughter duo who are working together for the CASA mission! As we approach Mother’s Day this month, we are honored to spotlight this tag team who are making huge contributions to bettering the lives of children and families experiencing the child welfare system. Celeste Prather was born and raised in Northeast Texas and graduated … Read More
Celeste and Rebecca Prather are a mother/daughter duo who are working together for the CASA mission! As we approach Mother’s Day this month, we are honored to spotlight this tag team who are making huge contributions to bettering the lives of children and families experiencing the child welfare system.
Celeste Prather was born and raised in Northeast Texas and graduated from Celeste High School. (Celeste from Celeste, her parents found that to be a fun play on words 😊). Her professions have been many, but always in the customer service arena. She currently resides in Commerce, Texas where she spends her spare time with her five grandchildren and hanging out with her husband, Don and her sweet pup, Lola Belle and cat babies, Bit, Mendi and Bendi.
Rebecca Prather is CASA for Hunt County’s Advocacy Team Lead. She was first introduced to the basic concept of CASA at a young age, as her mother worked for CASA. As she aged, her understanding of the CASA mission expanded. After years of indecisiveness throughout her college career, Rebecca graduated with a bachelor’s degree, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Family and Child Development. Within eight months of graduating college, Rebecca began working for CASA. Rebecca’s leisure time is spent hibernating in and enjoying her tiny home with her best friend, Jessie May, a precious dog she adopted in 2020.
How long have you worked for CASA, and how/why did you get involved with the CASA cause?
Celeste: I began volunteering with Lake Country CASA in 2001. I learned during the volunteer training that my home county, Hunt County, did not have a CASA program. A focus group was formed in Hunt County and Texas CASA was contacted to begin the program development process in February of 2002. We officially launched the program in October of that year and I was hired as Executive Director on Oct 1, 2002. After serving 13 years in that role, I came to Texas CASA as a Quality Assurance Specialist. In 2020, I became the Program Operations Director.
Rebecca: I began working for CASA on April 3, 2017. I attribute 100% of the reason why I became involved with CASA to my mom, Celeste. She has been the perfect role model for me my entire life, so I was, of course, inspired by her CASA work and saw an opportunity to become more like her. Being the true trailblazer that she is, she actually founded the program that I now work for. Despite all the self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy that I was experiencing fresh out of college, her opinion on me accepting the job never wavered; she was the main person strongly encouraging me to accept it and reassuring me that I was right for it.
Tell us about your current role in your CASA program.
Celeste: Currently I am the Program Operations Director at Texas CASA. I oversee Quality Assurance, along with working with new executive directors, new program directors, new board members and data projects.
Rebecca: My current role is Advocacy Team Lead. Our program’s Advocacy Team consists of me and three other passionate and experienced ladies. My job is to listen, use my CASA experiences to support and offer guidance or suggestions and ensure that our program, through both volunteers and staff, is consistently providing the best advocacy possible.
What is your favorite part about your job?
Celeste: I have lots of favorite parts, one of them is having the opportunity to work with the local programs’ leadership. I love supporting our network programs and seeing their successes!
Rebecca: My favorite part of my job—well, I have two—would have to be, 1. giving families tangible resources and support to improve their circumstances, which will hopefully lead to ultimately putting a family back together, and 2. connecting and creating meaningful, lifelong relationships with older teens who will likely age out of foster care.
How has working together for CASA been meaningful for you both?
Celeste: Rebecca was about 8 when the CASA mission became a part of our lives. At first, it was a volunteer role for me, but when I became the Executive Director and she got to tag along to all of the events. She attended the annual Light of Hope event every year, as well as many fundraisers and outreach events. After graduating from high school, and then college, she worked at one other job briefly, but shortly after she accepted her job at CASA for Hunt County in 2017. She had such a passion for the work. She is far better than I will ever be. Our front porch conversations are frequently around CASA. She will ask my thoughts on something CASA-related, I will answer, she will challenge that answer and we land somewhere in the middle. I laugh sometimes when she pulls into my driveway, and after 20 minutes of still sitting in the driveway, I know she is on the phone with a volunteer talking about their case…she doesn’t need to explain, it’s understood. I am so proud that she chose CASA as her career. It is a special bond that goes beyond mother/daughter.
Rebecca: My mom and I both working for CASA has given us yet another thing that we connect on and can relate to each other about. Having my mom be able to fully understand my job and give me feedback or advice has meant the world to me. Both of our jobs can be very emotionally taxing and exhausting at times, so I am beyond grateful that my job is just another area of my life that I can rely and lean on my mom for. As a side note, I did not necessarily want to be known only as ‘Celeste Prather’s daughter’ when I first embarked on this CASA journey, and I would even do my best to keep that information hidden when possible in an effort to create my own identity and reputation; now, I recognize that name is a badge of honor and I want everybody to know me as both ‘Rebecca Prather with CASA’ AND ‘Celeste Prather’s daughter’!
Clergy, CASA and Community (CCC) Kickoff Meeting
Clergy, CASA and Community (CCC) is an initiative by Texas CASA to build a network of faith communities and leaders to champion speaking up for local children in foster care and their families. The goal is to see communities and clergy leaders coming together to live out their calling and be a voice for the children who need them, and … Read More
Message from the Board President – Foster Care Month
Dear friends, As we move into May and begin to bring focus to National Foster Care Month, we want to first take the time to spotlight Texas CASA CEO, Vicki Spriggs, and the huge impact she has made in promoting a safer, more fruitful future for children and families experiencing the foster care system. Vicki has worked for almost 50 … Read More
May is National Foster Care Month
For 35 years, Texas CASA has created connections and support in the CASA network through innovative programs, community collaboration, impactful resources and advocacy for systemic change. You can support our 35 years of work today and throughout May to recognize National Foster Care Month. Texas CASA supports children and families. Families become involved with the child welfare system during a … Read More
Child Abuse Prevention Month Proclamation Day
On Friday, April 5, the Texas CASA team gathered at the south steps of the Texas Capitol for #GoBlueDay and Child Abuse Prevention Proclamation Day. This inspiring event began with a speech from Representative John Lujan, a former CASA volunteer and a father of five boys, three of whom are adopted. Commissioner Stephanie Muth of the Department of Family Protective … Read More