John Faultersack, a 79-year-old former CASA volunteer, crafts wooden toys for foster children, continuing his commitment to supporting kids through the holidays.
SAN ANTONIO — From the outside, the small workshop in John Faultersack’s backyard looks like any other outbuilding. Nothing about it stands out — until this time of year.
Inside, the 79-year-old retired Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteer spends his days crafting wooden toys destined for foster children, filling the space with what he calls the “happy holiday feels.”
“I started tinkering around the shop and some toys came out,” Faultersack said with a laugh. “The wood talks to me once in a while and tells me what it wants to be.”
Faultersack no longer advocates for foster children in the courtroom, but he has not fully stepped away from the work that has his heart. More than a decade ago, he began building old-fashioned wooden toys for children served by CASA.
“I’ll have wood scraps lying around, and the result is, ‘Oh, that’s a car,’” he said. “Do what you can while you can and give back. Pay it back. Pay it forward.”
These days, Faultersack says he enjoys giving in a different way — by seeing smiles on children’s faces during the Christmas season. He laughed while recalling his annual toy deliveries to the CASA office.
“The staff really seems to love them,” he said, smiling. “I don’t know about the kids. The staff plays with the toys, so I don’t know how many make it to the children.”
Faultersack builds at his own pace, following whatever inspires him on a given day.
“I grab bits and scraps of things that didn’t quite work out or that I was saving for something else,” he said. “It’s part of the joy of seeing things take shape and knowing maybe somebody else will enjoy them. This is my way of giving back to CASA for supporting kids who desperately need it.”
He said his time as an advocate left a lasting impression.
“Watching out for them, almost being that surrogate parent,” he said. “CASA could do so much more if they had more volunteers. They do good work there, and we need to support them when we can.”