Rep. Leger Fernández Invites Community Leader and Child Advocate As Guest To State of the Union
Washington, DC,
February 6, 2023
Today, Congresswoman Leger Fernández announced Carrie-Leigh Cloutier as her in-person guest to President Biden’s State of the Union Address to Congress on Tuesday, February 7, 2023. Ms. Cloutier is the CEO of Chaves County Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), an organization of advocates who speak up for abused and neglected children who are at risk of falling through the cracks of the overburdened court system. The State of the Union Address will highlight the historic investment, positive economic outcomes, achievements, and work still to be done under the leadership of President Biden. This year the SOTU will be in-person. “Carrie-Leigh is an inspirational example of leadership, compassion, community, and collaboration. Her work to serve abused and neglected kids makes a powerful difference for families in Roswell and across the Southeastern part of New Mexico. Carrie-Leigh is a hero and I am proud to share her story with others in Congress,” said Leger Fernández. “In Congress, we must support the most vulnerable among us. Last year, we passed the historic Bipartisan Safer Communities Act and I want to make sure that funding makes its way down to Chaves County. I also worked to sustain the Crime Victims Fund which is an important source of revenue for CASA. It’s exciting to contemplate the many ways in which I can support Chaves County and CASA’s creative strategies to provide legal assistance for victims, outreach to underserved populations, and community education and job training,” concluded Leger Fernández. “Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández is a stalwart champion of rural New Mexico and its vulnerable children. The Chaves County CASA Program is a constellation of programs that serve thousands of abused, neglected, homeless, and human trafficked children and their families every year. We take innovative approaches to trauma intervention and healing that are making a powerful difference to Southeastern New Mexico, an especially high risk area,” concluded Carrie-Leigh Cloutier, CEO of Chaves County Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and SOTU Guest. I am deeply grateful to Congresswoman Leger-Fernandez for her passionate support and invitation to be her guest at the State of the Union Address. She and her enthusiastic staff have welcomed me so graciously with this honor. I am looking forward to a future partnership with them to bring healing to many more children in New Mexico.” concluded Cloutier. About Carrie-Leigh Cloutier Carrie-Leigh Cloutier is a social entrepreneur who has dedicated her 35 year career to building innovative programs for vulnerable children in rural New Mexico. She leads programs such as Court Appointed Special Advocates, a Children’s Advocacy Center, a Drop-In Center for high-risk youth, Visitation Center, Family Resource Center, LGBTQ+ programs, and programs for human trafficked children. Specializing in creative approaches to responding to trauma, Cloutier is the President of the Courthouse Dogs Foundation, working to spread their powerful mission around the world. Cloutier is a wife, mother, yoga teacher, reader and traveler. She received her education at the University of Dallas and SMU. ### |