Professional Facilitators and Peer-Led Caregiver Support Groups
Many grandparents and other relatives look forward to a time, later in life, to work on their own projects and enjoy retirement. For kinship caregivers, that time may never come. Unexpectedly, they are asked to raise children for the second time around, often without adequate family, financial, or community supports. As a result, kinship caregivers commonly report that they feel alone in their struggles. They lose touch with old friends who don’t have the same caregiving responsibilities. They may no longer have the time and energy to stay active with local community or faith-based organizations. This sense of isolation can become overwhelming for some kinship caregivers, making it even more difficult to care properly for themselves and the children they are raising. Our Kinship Navigators will help kinship caregivers identify their struggles and link them to support groups that fit their needs. Kinship Navigators can also connect families to community-based services that can not only meet their needs, but also meet their social and recreational desires (e.g., hot meals, respite, after school programs, teen mentorship, adult education, and physical activities).
