JOHN COFFELTEditor

Coffee County General Sessions and Juvenile Court Judge Greg Perry recognized CASA volunteer Robert Many during a Family Treatment Court graduation held Sept. 13 at the Justice Center.

Many has volunteered at CASA Works (Court Appointed Special Advocates), a program that provides a voice for abused and neglected children in Bedford, Coffee and Franklin counties, for almost seven years.

Perry commended Many on his dedication and long hours spent volunteering for the youth of the county.

“Rich is a saint for Coffee County,” Perry said, “He has taken on multiple cases with multiple children and has been relentless in checking on these kids – going to their houses.”

Perry said that there is not enough CASA volunteers, “and Rich is doing the job of five.”

“Not only does he go to visit all the kids, he goes to every meeting and is on every Zoom call that we have,” Perry said.

Family Treatment Court is a program that offers help parents get addiction treatment and reunite them with their families in a safe environment.

Participation be a short as a year or last longer depending on the needs of the participants. Recently four parents graduated the program.

Perry called the ceremony a rare day in the court system. Rare is a day in the court system when there is a celebration.

“We are here to celebrate the hard work and commitment of our graduates,” Perry said.

He called the program a different approach by the court system.

“For the program to succeed it requires the court to join with the Department of Children Services, law enforcement, public defenders, mental health providers, A&D providers — we all collaborate to provide as many services as we can for our participants,” Perry said.

The program calls for the belief in real change in lives, Perry said.

“This is just the start of your journey,” Perry told the graduates. “Good things are still to come. We are your family. We are always here. We’re not here to punish you; we’re here to help.”

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.