This March, we celebrated Social Work Month, recognizing social workers for the important work they do to help families and individuals confront, cope with, and overcome challenges.
This year, the National Association of Social Workers had designated “Social Work Breaks Barriers” as the theme for Social Work Month.
One broken barrier celebrated at the Lackawanna County Area Agency on Aging was the increased awareness of the programs and support offered to caregivers, including grandparents raising grandchildren.
Over the past few years our agency has worked diligently to provide information and outreach to grandparents, schools, social service agencies and religious institutions to increase awareness of this program funded through the Pennsylvania Department of Aging. Since 2020, we have reached, assessed and enrolled 48 grandparents in Grandparent Caregiver Support Program!
For many people, grandparenting means a weekend visit, an evening babysitting, a summer vacation or a fun outing. But for some, when life circumstances change, it often falls to grandparents to assume full time responsibility for their grandchildren.
Grandparents taking on the parenting role for their grandchildren is a growing trend in the United States. This often means giving up your personal time, vacationing and much of your independence.
Instead, you once again take on responsibility for the daily maintenance of home, activity and school schedules, meals, homework and play dates. In most cases, it also requires you to step into the role of a parent, facing many unexpected stressful factors, such as coping with your own and your grandchildren’s grief and finding resources to support your grandchild.
For grandparents 55 years and older, the Pennsylvania Caregiver Support Program provides resources and assistance to individuals who assume the primary responsibility of a grandchild. The goal is to support the grandparent and encourage a healthy, ongoing relationship with their grandchild.
The Grandparent Caregiver Support Program aims to alleviate the stresses associated with caregiving by focusing on the well-being of the grandparents.
Services provided include access to respite care, addressing the need for formal and informal support and providing financial reimbursement for out-of-pocket costs associated with caregiving-related services and supplies.
Each caregiver is assigned a care manager who will come to the grandparents home, conduct a comprehensive assessment of the needs, provide support and work with grandparents to develop a person-centered plan of care.
In addition, the Lackawanna County Area Agency on Aging runs a monthly grandparent support group called PAST, Parents a Second Time.
Facilitated by certified family development specialists through Outreach for Community Empowerment, this support group meets the second Monday of each month from 5-7:30 pm at the Throop Civic Center, 500 Sanderson St. The goal of the support group is to build relationships and support for grandparents, help with success to supportive services and community referrals for their grandchildren, and answer questions about child development. You do not have to be enrolled in Aging’s Caregiver Support Program to attend this support group. The group offers free childcare and dinner, allowing grandparents time to share and discuss challenges and successes they have experienced. The group often plans additional activities throughout the year together such as picnics, recreational activities, and Holiday celebrations!
If you or someone you know if a grandparent raising a grandchild, please let them know they are not alone, and there is support in Lackawanna County.
The County Assistance Office, dhs.pa.gov, 1-800-692-7462, can help identify and apply for available benefits such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Child Care Works and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Residents can also search for benefits at www.compass.state.pa.us to find out what benefits they qualify for and apply for those benefits online.
Area Agencies on Aging, www.lackawannaaging.org, 570-963-6740, provides a Grandparent Support Program which can provide resources, support groups and financial assistance to grandparents raising their grandchildren.
You can search for your local Social Security Office and contact them to determine if you or your grandchildren are eligible for any additional benefits. Visit ssa.gov or call 1-800-772-1213 to get started.
OUTREACH for Community Empowerment offers a support group to grandparents raising another family members’ child or children. For more information, email PAST@lackawannacounty.org or call the Lackawanna County Area Agency.
Sara McDonald is the acting director of the Lackawanna County Area Agency on Aging. She has worked for the Lackawanna County Department of Human Services for 18 years.
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