I Speak for This Child: The True Stories of a Child Advocate Book

In I Speak for This Child, best-selling novelist Gay Courter recounts her experiences as a Guardian ad Litem, a volunteer court-appointed advocate for children involved in the legal system. Every day, children are involved - often as the objects of custody battles or as victims of abuse - in legal proceedings that they can't comprehend, but that will greatly affect their chances for future security and happiness. Lawyers work in the best interests of their clients, who are usually the parents, judges must remain impartial, and social workers are hampered by excessive caseloads and bureaucratic rules. Only one person speaks - fiercely, independently, and with broad legal powers - purely on behalf of the child: the Guardian ad Litem. Child advocacy programs exist in hundreds of jurisdictions in all fifty states, but most are in great need of volunteers. This is the true story of Gay Courter's experiences as a Guardian ad Litem, of her first tentative approach to her local program, of learning about the duties and responsibilities of her position, and of her efforts to ensure that, at least in the cases assigned to her, America's most vulnerable citizens were treated with care and respect. Her story is both heartbreaking and heartwarming, and is an inspiration for anyone who has ever looked up from a newspaper and wondered, "What can I do to help?"

The author of The Midwife, The Midwife's Advice, and other bestselling novels recounts her experiences as a Guardian ad Litem, a court-appointed advocate for children involved in the legal system. Gay Courter offers both heartbreaking and inspiring recollections of her struggle to defend America's most vulnerable citizens.