What is a GrandFamily?

A GrandFamily is a particular kind of Kinship Arrangement.  In the state of Ohio, a child or children being raised by a relative that is not a biological parent is called a Kinship Arrangement.  Kinships where grandparents are raising grandchildren are the most prevelant.  That’s why our program is entitled The Great GrandFamilies Project.  However, our support and resources are available to all kinship families.

GrandFamily is term used to describe a situation where children are being raised by their grandparents.  In the state of Ohio alone, GrandFamilies represent 124,000 children.  That’s as many as Michigan, Indiana, and West Virginia Combined!  There are actually more GrandFamilies in Ohio than there are in Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania has 1.1 million more people in it.  This is an epic problem.

Who Are They?

  • White 76% 76%
  • African American 19% 19%
  • Hispanic or Latino 2.8% 2.8%
  • Asian .4% .4%
  • Native American .3% .3%
  • All Other Races Combined 1.5% 1.5%

Children living with Grandparents with no Parent present

Children living where Grandparents own the house

Children living with relatives other than Parents or Grandparents

99,877 Grandparents

are householders who are also responsible for their Grandchildren who live with them.

Of these:

%

Do not have Parents Present

%

Are in Poverty

%

Are Under the Age of 60

%

Have A Disability

%

Are In the Workforce

%

Are Not Married

Data collected from “Grandfacts Fact Sheet” for the state of Ohio on www.grandfamilies.org.

Why Are There So Many?

The number one cause of Grandparents raising their Grandchildren is substance abuse according to the “State of Grandfamilies 2016” publication by Generations United.  Between 2002 and 2013 the rate of overdose deaths from heroin in the United States have QUADRUPLED!  In 2014 the overdose death rate for both prescription and illegal drugs among white americans was 5 times what it was in 1999.

The story often goes like this.  Young people have a child.  They become addicted to drugs (usually heroin) either before during or after the pregnancy.  These young parents are soon so consumed by their addictions that they neglect or even abuse their children.  Soon, the grandparents begin caring for the children and somewhere along the line end up with full custody, because the parents are either incarcerated or dead from overdose.

For every 1 child in foster care with relatives, there are 20 children being raised by Grandparents or other relatives outside the system.  This means that, in most GrandFamily situations, the Grandparents are receiving no help and simply absorbing the cost of raising a second generation of children.  This leaves these caring individuals with less money to save for retirement, health care, and living expenses.

If help is not provided now for these couragous people, they will overwhelm the Medicaid system within a decade.  They need help with the cost of childcare, their own health, health care for their Grandchildren, and the rising cost of education.  They also need to learn the skills necessary to effectively parent children in a digital age ruled by the internet and social media.  More than anything they need to know that they are not alone and that there are resources and support networks available to help them through this difficult time.

This is what The Great GrandFamilies Project is designed to do.