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Relative Care >
Grandparents over 60 caring for
three grandchildren.
The call came at 2:30 a.m. "Can you
come and pick up your grandchildren?" The police had
arrested both parents for drug involvement, leaving the
Womack's three grandchildren, Janet, age 6 and the twins,
Michael and Mary, age 2, without a home.
Mr. and Mrs. Womack, both in their
60's, were referred to Family Ties by the Department of
Social Services. They needed help fast, starting with beds
for the twins. Family Ties provided them with beds at no
cost to the Womacks.
The outreach worker from Family Ties
arranged for counseling for the children, to help them
deal with the separation from their parents and the
domestic violence they observed in their home. Mr. and
Mrs. Womack also received counseling to deal with the
dramatic changes that parenting the children brought to
their lives.
Health issues have made it impossible
for Mrs. Womack to take care of the children alone;
therefore, Mr. Womack has assumed most of the childcare
responsibilities. Family Ties has helped to provide the
family with childcare.
Family Ties has also been able to
provide respite care for Mr. Womack enabling him to go to
necessary physical therapy.
Mr. Womack has been participating
regularly in Family Ties Caregiver Support Groups where he
receives encouragement and parenting ideas from other
grandparents who are raising their young grandchildren. He
has also taken parenting classes through Family Ties.
Mr. Womack and his grandchildren enjoy
attending Family Ties sponsored recreational events
together, such as going to see Disney on Ice, visiting the
Technology Museum, and joining other families for picnics
and outings. He and his wife now have a network of friends
who understand and share their experience, and give them
support and hope.
The Family Ties program staff stand
ready to respond when a new need arises. Faced with a
potentially tragic set of events, the Womacks have
provided consistency and a safe haven for their three
grandchildren, with the help of Family Ties.
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