Meet Rosie Ronnow, VOICES’ Training & Program Manager.

Name: Rosie Ronnow

Current city of residence: Phoenix

What is your role at Voices for CASA Children?

My role at VOICES is CASA Training & Program Manager. I have the pleasure of managing ongoing training opportunities for CASAs, working on retention initiatives and trying to make CASAs feel as amazing, important and appreciated as they are!

How long have you been with the organization?

I have been with VOICES for about a year and a half.

What brought you to work in the child welfare field? 

My background is in public health, and before CASA I had mostly worked on global health initiatives in developing settings. When I finished my MPH and moved back to Arizona, I started hearing more and more about foster care, which started my interest in the links between foster care and health outcomes later in life, which led me to apply with CASA. And the rest is history!

What’s your “Why” in “Why CASA?”

Children are the most important members of our society, and every child deserves safety, love and consistency.   

What’s the best part of your job? Why?

Since I became involved with CASA, I have always said that they best part of my job is that I get to interact with the best part of our community every day. I believe that everything in life has balance, and that CASA volunteers balance the terrible parts of this system by bringing light and hope not only to children but to the whole child welfare field. 

Dogs or cats? Coffee or Tea? Mountains or Beach?

All the animals, coffee, mountains. 

In what cities have you lived? Which one do you consider “home”?

Phoenix, Tucson, Cuernavaca, Copenhagen and Melbourne. “Home” is where my family is, which is currently Phoenix!

What is the best advice you have ever received?

The way people treat you is a statement about who they, not about who you are.

Being authentic and genuine is way more important than being liked – you’ll never be able to please everyone, and that is OK! As Dr. Seuss says, “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.”

Always be kind!!

What is the best compliment you’ve ever received?

A colleague told me once that she hoped her daughter would be like me when she grew up. Having a daughter of my own now, I feel like that is such an honor. 

What is your favorite guilty pleasure?

Watching the Bachelor/Bachelorette.

What’s something you’ve done, but will never do again?

I ate tarantulas in Cambodia. Though they didn’t taste terrible, I don’t plan on trying them again!