Issues

Will He Fit In

Posted by Paige Richardson in category on September 23, 2011

Recently, I spent some time visiting with a great-grandmother who is raising her great-grandson. Her grandson, a senior in high school, is battling cancer and they make monthly trips to Baptist Hospital for treatment. The grandmother is proud of her grandson and what he has achieved, but she worries. Will he fit in? Does he have the things other young people his age have? How will the two of them survive on her social security?

This great-grandmother is not alone. According to the AARP, 4.9 million children under age 18 live in grandparent-headed households.  Grandparents raising grandchildren face a host of issues from choosing quality child care to medical and legal decisions.

Help for grandparents (and other relatives) raising grandchildren is available through the NC Division of Aging and Adult Services and the NC Resource Guide from AARP.