Although grandparents raising grandchildren is not a new occurrence, there have however been increasing numbers of occurrences in the 21st
Century. Many factors contribute to this phenomenon such as increased life expectancy, higher rates of divorce, increased une
mployment, military deployment and disruptive factors affecting the family with drug use or incarceration.
In Maryland alone approximately 152,000 children under the age of 18 live in homes with grandparents or other relatives. Out of that 152,000 approximately 48,000 of those children are the sole responsibility of the grandparents. Both the Howard County Caregiver Support Program and the Office of Children and Families are working diligently to provide support for grandparents raising grandchildren in Howard County.
The Caregiver Support Program and the Federal Government, through the Older Americans Act, provides each state with funding for the Family Caregiver Support Program. Our Caregiver Support program supports grandparents and other relatives (not parents) 55 years or older providing care to children 18 years or younger, and grandparents and other relatives (not parents) 55 years and older providing care to adults age 18-59 with disabilities with grant funds. We are committed to providing resources to assist and benefit grandparents and grandchildren as they navigate their journey through caregiver education and a conversation series focused on caregiving and preparing for the present and future. The Office of Children and Families has a referral line for residents wi
th questions about caring for their grandchildren. These calls entail legal custody and guardianship questions, enrolling children in school and obtaining health coverage.
The Office of Children and Families and the “Family Institute” offer a wide range of events, seminars and cl
asses for parents and grandparents to help grandparents in their caregiving journey as primary caregivers and guardians.
Please contact 410-313-6060 or 410-313-2273 for more information. Valuable resources for this article: www.howardcountymd.gov; GrandFacts, www.aarp.org; Boslaugh, S., Grandparents raising grandchildren, Salem Press, 2013R ECIP
