May 12, 2022
GRANDFAMILIES ALERT
Hello Friends of Grandfamilies,

Below you will find some recent updates and resources from the field. If you know anyone who may be interested in receiving these alerts, please forward this to them and/or encourage them to sign up here.
TOP NEWS
Learn more about the Children's Bureau's National Foster Care Month 2022 campaign, "Relative and Kin Connections: Keeping Families Strong,"
Learn more about the Administration for Community Living's Older Americans Month theme "Age My Way" an opportunity to explore the many ways older adults can remain in and be involved with their communities. 
EVENTS
Creating Partnership in Kinship Treatment
Foster Care Webinar 
Join the Child Welfare Capacity Building Center for the States on Wednesday, May 25th from 1:30 to 3:00p.m. Eastern Time for a webinar entitled “Creating Partnership in Kinship Treatment Foster Care.” This event will highlight a Treatment Family Care pilot program in North Carolina and research from the African American Families and Kinship Care Lab at the University of North Carolina Greensboro.
Register here! Questions? Contact Chris King at chris.king@icf.com. 

Advocacy for Siblings in Care Webinar 
The National Association of Council for Children is hosting a webinar on advocacy for siblings in foster care on Thursday, May 19th from 2:00 -3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. This webinar will focus on the importance of sibling relationships, and how to advocate for those connections at each stage of a child welfare case, including placement, visitation, reunification, and post-termination contact. Attendees will learn practice tips in advocating for supports, services and resources, and how to navigate potential conflicts. Presenters will include perspectives from both the lived expertise, as well as from the legal & trial perspective including friend of Generations United Autumn Adams, who is a member of the Yakama Nation and an alumnus of foster care. Autumn was awarded guardianship of her two younger siblings to keep her family together and maintain their cultural heritage and teachings. 
Please note there is a $45 cost for this webinar unless you are a NACC member.  
Sign up here!
 
RESOURCES
Kinship Adoption and Guardianship Comparison Resources 
Generations United with support from the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, created an issue brief, national comparison chart, state-specific charts for 20 states and user guide that focus on adoption and guardianship for children in kinship foster care so that these children can exit foster care into permanent families. Read and share these free resources.  
Generations United has a limited number of hard copies of these resources available by request. Contact gu@gu.org to request. 
 
Grandfamilies and Kinship Families: Strengths and Challenges Fact Sheet  
This Generations United Fact sheet is a general resource for anyone who is interested in learning more about grandfamilies and kinship families. It incorporates data, a few brief policy and advocacy recommendations, infographics, and quotes from family members. Featured information includes data related to the number of children living in grandfamilies and kinship families and the racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic characteristics of families in which grandparents are raising their grandchildren. The fact sheet also discusses the strengths of grandfamilies and kinship families, highlighting familial, cultural, behavioral, and mental health benefits. Additionally, it provides details about the challenges these families face, from legal and financial issues to physical and mental health, housing, and education. The end of the fact sheet contains links to additional resources. Click here to download the fact sheet.
 
Kinship Care and the Child Welfare System Brief 
The Child Welfare Information Gateway recently released a brief entitled Kinship Care and the Child Welfare System. Kinship care can occur with or without the involvement of a child welfare agency, depending on the situation. This factsheet is designed to help kin caregivers work effectively with the child welfare system. It also includes resources, such as links to more detailed information or places to find support, to help caregivers learn about and navigate the child welfare system. Click here to learn more. 

Tax Refund Resources  
New resources are available to help ensure families access new tax credit expansions such as the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit. Learn more about these resources at Get It Back (taxoutreach.org). The GetYourRefund.org website is available through October 1st for people to file federal and state income tax returns for free. 

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is collecting EITC success stories that help illustrate the impact and benefits of the EITC. The stories can be brief and should include: the age of the person, the work they do, their refund amount, and how they used/planned to use their refund. For example, Marco is 20 years old and works part-time as a cashier and earned $10,000 in 2021. He got a federal EITC of $1,502 when he filed his 2021 taxes. Marco plans to use the money to purchase a computer and open a savings account. The hope is personal success stories may encourage other people to claim the tax benefits they qualify for. If you have any stories to share, please send them to Roxy Caines, caines@cbpp.org and Janne Huang, jhuang@cbpp.org. 

Internet Connectivity Assistance
The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) would like to make you aware of the Affordable
Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP is a Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
program to help low-income households pay for internet service and connected devices.
Eligible households may receive:

  • Up to $30/month discount on internet service.
  • Up to $75/month discount if the household is on qualifying Tribal lands.
  • A one-time discount of up to $100 for a laptop, table, or desktop computer (with a co-payment of more than $10 but less than $50)

Please use the tools in the documents below to learn more about the program.
CAREGIVER CORNER
In celebration of Foster Care Month’s theme “Relative Kin Connections: Keeping Families Strong” we extend our appreciation for all you do to care for children. Enjoy this tribute written by long- time friend of Generations United, Rolanda Pyle.  
 
A Tribute to Grandparents Raising
Their Grandchildren  
 
We would like to celebrate you for all you’ve done. 
For caring for your granddaughter and your grandson. 
You took on this awesome task that no one else could do 
because no one loves and cares for your grandchild quite like you. 
 
You had the courage to start all over again. 
Raising your grandchildren at an age 
when you thought you might retire, travel and rest. 
But the children needed caregivers, and they needed the best. 
Some came to you in pampers and most in tears 
needing nurturing and someone who cares. 
 
Others came as toddlers, exploring the world on the run. 
You couldn’t believe this happened - after you thought that you were done. 
Still others came at school age, when they needed guidance and direction. 
Science may have you baffled but you are great at giving affection. 
 
And some of you have teenagers, oh my, what can I say. 
Just keep reminding yourself that they won’t stay this way. 
 
We know it has not been easy – often quite a heavy load. 
And there have been many bumps along the road. 
You’ve been misunderstood, labeled and denied the services you need, 
often criticized and not recognized for your labor or your good deed. 
 
But we are here to honor you 
who have done so much to change the lives of children with your special touch. 
 
We thank you, grandparents: 
we thank you once, 
we thank you twice. 
And know you are appreciated for the rest of your life. 
 
Thank you, grandparents. 
Thanks for reading this newsletter. If you have anything you would like included in future newsletters, please send them to Jamarl D. Clark at jclark@gu.org. We’d love to hear your thoughts on this newsletter. Feel free to reply with any feedback or comments.

Best,
The Grandfamilies Team