The needs of informal grandparent caregivers and how they are met at the Kinship Family Center

• Main Authors: Osborne-Lewis, Emily Jane, Clardy, Shanta LaShawn
• Format: Others
• Published: CSUSB ScholarWorks 2005
• Subjects: Grandparents as parents Services for California San Bernardino County Evaluation; Caregivers Services for California San Bernardino County Evaluation; Children Services for California San Bernardino County Evaluation; Kinship care California San Bernardino County; Children Services for Evaluation; Evaluation; Kinship care.; Gerontology; Social Work
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2790; https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3807&context=etd-project

Seventeen grandparent caregivers, who have primary responsibility for one or more grandchildren and do not have a parent of the grandchildren living in the household, were interviewed to evaluate the effectiveness of the services offered by Kinship Family Center (KFC), a non-profit support agency for relative caregivers and the children in their care. Kinship Family Center is a program of the Central City Lutheran Mission and is funded by the San Bernardino County Department of Children's Services. The researchers found that KFC was an effective asset for informal grandparent caregivers. For grandparents, it was a source of support and comfort in their role of "second time around parents." For children, it served as a means to help identify with other children in similar situations.