Services & Programs

GrandFamilies offers a variety of services, programs, and educational classes designed to support both relative caregivers and the children in their care and assist in areas including:

  • Crisis intervention
  • Guardianship
  • Financial resources
  • Insurance issues
  • School enrollment
  • Emotional support
  • Drug and alcohol education
  • Mental health
  • Parenting skills

Families First Class is a 10-week series of classes that meet weekly throughout the year. We meet at our main CSS office to help meet the needs of our families. Some of the topics discussed are - unique family dynamics of kinship caregiving, understanding drug and alcohol addiction, understanding your legal rights and how to deal with the emotional issues of the children in your care.

Friend 2 Friend is a monthly activity and support group that is available to families who have completed the Grandfamilies First Classes. We have an annual Holiday Party with Santa, Halloween Party, Easter Egg Hunt, Summer Picnic, free tickets to professional sporting events (as available) and other community activities. We also provide guest speakers to inform Grandfamilies members on pertinent topics such as domestic violence, legal issues regarding adoption, guardianship and custody, internet safety, and many other subjects or topics of concern.

Children’s Groups are held at the same time as the adult groups. These groups are for children ages 4 through 11. The Children's groups are psycho-social classes lead by trained professionals. Topics that are discussed are; drug and alcohol prevention, family dynamics, feelings, communication skills, stress reduction, anger management and other social skills.

Advocacy is provided by trained and licensed professionals. Staff is trained to assist clients in obtaining financial assistance for kinship caregivers and Medicaid for children (when possible), school enrollment, and interaction with government agencies. We also offer brief, solution focused therapy and limited mediation services for families in crisis through mental health professionals.