Two-Year Grant Expands Services to Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
WASHINGTON, D.C., August 23, 2006 — With the number of grandparent-headed homes on the rise, AARP Foundation announced a two-year, $267,000 grant from the New York Life Foundation to its Grandparent Information Center (GIC) in New York State.
According to the 2000 Census, nearly 4.5 million children live in grandparent-headed homes, a 30 percent increase from 1990. One-fifth of these families lives in poverty and could benefit from support services to help them cope with the challenges of becoming a parent for the second time.
“More and more grandparents are taking on the challenging, but rewarding, job of raising their grandchildren,” noted Robin Talbert, executive director of AARP Foundation. “This grant will allow us to expand the much-needed support services and resources for grandparent-headed families.”
“The New York Life Foundation is proud to build on the success of our first grant and provide additional support for a program that has already proven to be so helpful to countless grandparents,” said Sy Sternberg, chairman and chief executive officer of New York Life and chairman of the New York Life Foundation. “The funding will provide grandparents with important training and skills to support their grandchildren in a healthy, productive environment.”
The New York Life Foundation grant will support the New York State Kincare Coalition, which does outreach to grandparents statewide, conducts workshops and provides them with educational resources that help them manage becoming the primary providers for the health and well-being of their grandchildren.
The grant supports the extension of the policy and program work by the New York State Kincare Coalition and funds informational guides on topics such as school enrollment, applying for public assistance, and foster-parent certification for grandparents in each of New York State’s 62 counties; training manuals and workshops for service providers that assist grandparents; and coalition building, in the form of regional summits where provider agencies can share best practices.
In 2003, the New York Life Foundation awarded AARP Foundation a three-year, $500,000 grant that funded the Grandparent Information Center, a nine-state outreach program that educated, supported and empowered minority grandparents raising grandchildren. The program created newsletters, telephone hotlines and statewide coalitions that developed and implemented outreach to grandparents and conducted workshops for both grandparents and service providers.
AARP Foundation is AARP’s affiliated charity. Foundation programs provide security, protection and empowerment for older persons in need. Low-income older workers receive the job training and placement they need to re-join the work force. Free tax preparation is provided for low- and moderate-income individuals, with special attention to those 60 and older. The Foundation’s litigation staff protects the legal rights of older Americans in critical health, long-term care, consumer and employment situations. Additional programs provide information, education and services to ensure that people over 50 lead lives of independence, dignity and purpose. Foundation programs are funded by grants, tax-deductible contributions and AARP. For more information, visit www.aarpfoundation.org.
The New York Life Foundation is the major vehicle through which New York Life Insurance Company channels contributions to national and local nonprofit organizations. Through its Nurturing the Children initiative, the Foundation supports organizations, programs and services that target young people, particularly in the areas of mentoring, safe places to learn and grow, and educational enhancement opportunities. Please visit the Foundation’s Web site at www.newyorklifefoundation.org.
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