I Love You, but

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I Love You, but

• Strengths and Challenges of Intergenerational
  Kinship Households

Nancy Hale, MSS, LSW Joy Woods Jones, MSW Carolyn
Schneider, BA
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What is Kinship Care?
A family situation in which a grandparent or
other relative is the primary caregiver for a
child or children when a birth parent is unable
to fill this role.
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What is Kinship Care?

• Common Elements
• safety net for the children
• temporary or permanent
• context of crisis and/or chronic life challenges
• children may or may not be related
• parental involvement
• varying degrees
• fluidity

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Kinship Care in the US

• Current Population Survey (March 2000)
• 5.5 million children in kinship households
• 2.1 million with no parent present

Note numbers are UNDER estimated
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Factors Leading to Kinship Care

• Parent becomes incapacitated, unable or
  unavailable
• Significantly impaired parenting skills
• Child abuse/neglect
• Substance abuse
• Significant disability of parent
• Overwhelming work schedules
• Death of parent
• Incarceration

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Factors Leading to Kinship Care

• Childs health/special needs
• Poverty
• Abandonment
• Teen pregnancy
• HIV/aids or other medical condition
• Mental illness

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Program Descriptions

• Supportive Older Womens Network Grandparent
  Caregiver Connection
• Family Friends Kinship Support Program
• Grandmas Kids

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Supportive Older Womens Network SOWNHelping
Women Discover the Power of Mutual Support as
They AgeGrandparent Caregiver
ConnectionCommunity-based and Telephone Support
Groups for Grandparents Raising Grandchildren.
Caregiver to Caregiver ConnectionTelephone
Support Groups for Caregivers of a relative with
Alzheimers or other type of dementia.
Telephone Group ConnectionTelephone Support
Groups for Homebound Older Women.Community
Group ConnectionSupport Groups for Older Women
in Community settings and Senior
Housing.Because no woman should have to age
alone.
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GRANDPARENT CAREGIVER CONNECTIONGrandparents
Raising Grandchildren Support Group Program

• Serves Grandparents and other relative caregivers
  ages 50 and above
• Offers Community and Telephone Support Groups
• Follow-up counseling, information, referral
• Funded by
• Philadelphia Corporation for Aging (Area Agency
  on Aging)
• Department of Human Resources Parenting
  Collaborative

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Power of the Support Group Model

• Sharing with others who have walked in my
  shoes.
• Telling my story to people who listen and dont
  say, Youre raising children again at your
  age!!
• Listening to others who can say, Take care of
  yourself, so you can care for the children.

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Family Friends Kinship Support Program
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Family Friends Kinship Program

• Funded by
• Philadelphia Corporation on Aging (AAA)
• Philadelphia Department of Human Services
• Provide support to kinship caregivers
• Caregivers of any age
• PCA focus on caregivers 60 yrs
• DHS focus on children with special needs
• Living in Philadelphia
• Raising children under 21 years

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Goal to support kinship caregivers by providing

• Respite
• Social Work Support
• Informal counseling
• Problem solving
• Information Referral
• Advocacy
• Education
• Contact with other kinship caregivers

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Family Friends Kinship Program

• In-home respite
• Saturday respite trips
• Family support/social work services
• Special Events

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Family Friends Kinship Program

• In-home respite
• Older adult volunteer
• Visiting several times a week (2 - 4 hours)
• Visits in home or community outings
• Companion to child/children
• Friend to the caregiver

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Family Friends Kinship Program

• Saturday respite trips
• Group outings for children 5 - 15 years
• 6 hours of TIME OFF
• No cost to families
• FF volunteers as chaperones and buddies
• Special needs accommodated

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Family Friends Kinship Program

• Family support/social work services
• Home visits and phone contact
• Problem solving
• Advocacy
• Connection to community services and benefits
• Counseling -- someone to talk to

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Grandmas Kids(Video shown - no slides)
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Key Elements of Kinship Support

• Choice is important
• Services for children and caregiver
• Respite is criticaloffer options
• Caregiver events
• Social, recreational, educational
• Connection to other kinship caregivers
• Nurturing for body and soul
• Advocacy navigate the system
• Preference for informal support
• Someone to take the time to listen

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(Guided Imagery)
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Scenarios
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Obstacles and Challenges

• 2nd time around parent
• Not expected or planned
• Significant change in time and energy demands
• Loss of personal time
• Increase in stress
• Decrease in time for relaxation

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Obstacles and Challenges

• Learning new parenting style and skills
• New/different systems
• Comparison to peers lifestyles
• Loss of previous community
• Isolation

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Obstacles and Challenges

• Emotional needs
• Children
• Kinship caregiver
• Parent (child of the caregiver)
• Physical challenges
• Health issues of older caregiver
• Stress from caregiving
• Legal issues
• Custody and guardianship
• Planning for future

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Obstacles and Challenges

• Housing
• Space
• Safety/health concerns
• Lack of resources for improvements
• Education/schooling
• Registration in new school
• Special needs/special education
• Homework
• Physical access of schools

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Obstacles and Challenges

• Financial
• Increased expenses
• Food
• Utilities
• Clothing
• School supplies
• Recreation and extras
• Limited resources
• Change in employment

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Strengths of Kinship Caregivers

• Devotion to the children
• Knowing that the childrens needs are being met
• Pride in children for accomplishments
• Confidence in self to do whats needed
• Satisfaction despite the frustrations
• Joy that children in their life bring
• Asking for help

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Strengths of Kinship Caregivers

• Companionship from the children
• Staying active
• Learning to cope with challenges
• Problem solving
• Learning new skills
• Keeping current with the changing world

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Strengths of Kinship Caregivers

• Belief in family
• Childrens needs are primary
• Love
• Forgiveness
• Patience
• Support for parents efforts
• Spirituality and faith

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Strengths of Kinship Caregivers

• Appreciation for the Value of Family
• Keep child in the family and out of the system.
• Engage other family members in child care if
  possible.
• The desire to retain connection with natural
  parent if possible.

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Kinship caregivers are providing a safety net for
the children in their families. They step
forward out of love and commitment to family,
but end up trying to cope with the overwhelming
challenges and sacrifices. They are succeeding,
but they shouldnt have to go it alone. We need
to work together in our communities to support
their efforts and provide a safety net for the
caregivers and for the children they are raising.
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Nancy Hale, MSS, LSW Program Director Family
Friends nhale_at_temple.edu
Joy Woods Jones, MSW Project Coordinator Grandmas
Kids joyjones_at_temple.edu
Center for Intergenerational Learning Temple
University 1601 N. Broad St, USB
206 Philadelphia, PA 19122
Carolyn Schneider, BA Program Coordinator Grandpar
ent Caregiver Connection Supportive Older Womens
Network 2805 N. 47th St. Philadelphia, PA
19131 cschneider_at_sown.org