Kinship Connections
of Wyoming Blog

Welcome and thank you for joining Kinship Connections of Wyoming!

Kinship Connections of Wyoming is a free program that was implemented to meet the growing needs of grandparents, relatives and other caregivers who are raising children who are not their own. The program was initiated by Wyoming 2-1-1 in partnership with the Wyoming Department of Family Services and the Wyoming Citizen Review Panel. Kinship Connections officially began serving kinship caregivers in December 2019 and since that time the program's Kinship Navigators have had the opportunity to work with over twenty families.

The Kinship Connections of Wyoming blog and newsletter are intended to be here for kinship caregivers and collaborating community resources. We will provide up to date and relevant information regarding upcoming events, important topics, resources, and support. Today and always we welcome your feedback regarding our program or the content we share with you.

We see each of you, we appreciate all you do, and we are a part of your team. We look forward to growing together and serving you in new ways.

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If you would like to learn more about Kinship Connections of Wyoming, you can look through our website or you can reach us by simply dialing 2-1-1 and ask for Kinship Connections. Furthermore, if you know of a family who could benefit from our program you can direct them to simply dial 2-1-1 or you can complete our online referral form.

Did you know that Kinship Connections of Wyoming offers a monthly newsletters? We would love for you to join our mailing list by imputing your information below. You can also click here to view all our previous letters.

When Your Kinship Child Isn't a Child Anymore

March 19, 2022

Empty nester

Setting Boundaries as a Kinship Caregiver

January 20, 2022

Setting boundaries can be difficult for many people but can be especially difficult for kinship caregivers. They are balancing taking on a new role as primary caregiver to their child's child while still being a parent to their own child. There are conflicting feelings and changes to relationships you normally had with your child that now have to be changed. For example, maybe you had dinner on Sundays that now cannot occur since you took in your grandchild. Seeing your own child without their child may lead to guilt. Adjusting those boundaries is difficult, especially when feelings of guilt come up.

Setting boundaries for those you love can be difficult, but if you keep the best interest of everyone involved, you will have the greatest outcome for everyone. Sometimes short-term discomfort will lead to long-term success.

To learn more about setting boundaries as a kinship caregiver, read this Embrella article: http://foster-adoptive-kinship-family-services-nj.org/setting-boundaries-as-a-kinship-provider/

December 15, 2021

" This module explores how one person’s hope can be another person’s denial. Understanding how important hope is for family members is critical to empathetically working with them to maintain these hopes and to make other plans."

It can be common for kinship caregivers to replace denial with hope and fantasy. What we call denial, caregivers may call hope. For example, if a caregiver has a daughter on death row and the caregiver is telling the child that her mom might come home one day, that seems like denial. But for the caregiver it feels like hope. The caregiver still holds hope that maybe she will get a call from the jail. 'Even if she's on a gurney, I get a call, it's hope.'

Hope becomes a risk factor when a caregiver isn't able to form an alternative plan. When a caregiver expects the birth parent to complete all requirements for reunification 'this time' without alternative planning, that can be a child safety issue. Caregivers must first be able to manage unfulfilled hopes and fantasies in order to support the children in recovering from broken promises and fantasies from the birth parent.

It is important to be hopeful without letting hope prevent the caregiver from making alternative plans for the children before the courts have to make the decision for them. The caregiver must be able to plan for the child to be safe no matter the results of the birth parents' decision.

We may call it denial and a caregiver may call it hope. The important thing is helping caregivers manage it for the safety of the children.

Watch the short video on how to recognize signs of hope and fantasy that could prevent alternative planning.

Module 4: Hope, Fantasy and Denial https://youtu.be/DUEJg2REOSA

Engaging Kinship Caregivers: Managing Risk Factors in Kinship Care – A 5-Part Video Series.

October 7, 2021

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