Community Service Providers and Advocates
That Support Kinship Families in Connecticut
Introduction
This guide of community agencies in Connecticut working to support kinship* families was
compiled using the State GrandFacts Sheet for Connecticut, the database at the Connecticut
United Way 2-1-1 website, outreach to Roberta Gould at the Department of Social Services,
Aging Services, who oversees the GAPS Network described below, and contacts from the
Brookdale Foundation Group (the largest national network of support groups for relatives
raising children) and Generations United. Once the initial names were collected, phone
interviews began, which resulted in additional names and programs. Our thanks go out to all
those who contributed information to this guide.
Please note that this guide does not capture every community kinship service provider or
advocate in Connecticut. It does attempt to include those with the widest reach and breadth of
services. Contact information for many more relative caregiver support groups are in the list
prepared by Aging Services and linked to below in the entry for Aging Services. There is also
another support group list maintained by Connecticut Association of Foster and Adoptive
Parents (CAFAP), which includes relative caregivers, and there is a link for that list in the CAFAP
entry below.
The following organizations and agencies serving kinship families in Connecticut are listed in
alphabetical order:
AARP/Connecticut - has done state level advocacy for kinship caregivers for many years,
including advocating for parity between the financial assistance available to those in the child
welfare system and those outside the system. AARP was also part of the work group that
developed the Connecticut 2-1-1 system (see entry below).
Claudio Gualtieri
Associate State Director
21 Oak Street
Capitol Place, Suite 104
Hartford, CT 06106
Toll Free: (866) 295-7279
[email protected]
www.aarp.org/states/ct/
*
Please note that the terms “kinship” and “relative” are used interchangeably in this guide.
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AFCAMP - African Caribbean American Parents of Children with Disabilities, Inc. –
grandparents and other relatives raising children are among the families AFCAMP trains to
advocate for the special needs children they raise, in addition to providing direct advocacy
assistance in special education meetings with the schools (PPTs). AFCAMP also offers support
groups for caregivers raising children with specific diagnoses, like autism. AFCAMP collaborates
with other parent organizations across the state to ensure that families access the appropriate
services. AFCAMP is a federally funded "Community Parent Resource Center” through the US
Department of Education, Office of Special Education.
Sheila Harris
Family/School Support Coordinator
60-B Weston Street
Hartford, CT 06120
(860) 548-9959, extension 302
[email protected]
www.afcamp.org/index.html (currently updating website)
Aging Services, DSS
The GAPS Network
The State of Connecticut Department of Social Services Aging Services Division developed the
Grandparents as Parents Support network (GAPS) to provide assistance in establishing support
groups for grandparents and other relatives raising children. This statewide network is designed
to encourage and promote the creation of services for relatives who have taken on the
responsibility of parenting. GAPS support groups were started in all five regions of the state
under the auspices of the Brookdale Foundation Group’s national program, Relatives as Parents
Program (RAPP). The RAPP is in 47 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico and is the
most significant national network of supportive services for relatives raising children.
Connecticut’s GAPS has over 200 agencies, individuals, and organizations that are providing
services or assistance to grandparent and relative caregivers. The GAPS Network listserv
provides information to its members regarding grant opportunities, legislative updates, and
other pertinent subjects such as legal issues and community resources. Please see a link below
to an extensive list of relative support groups around Connecticut; this list is compiled and
updated by Aging Services.
Roberta Gould
Aging Services Division Field Representative
State of Connecticut Department of Social Services
(860) 424-5199
[email protected]
www.ct.gov/agingservices/cwp/view.asp?a=2513&q=313054
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List of relative support groups:
www.ct.gov/agingservices/lib/agingservices/pdf/ctgrandparentcaregiversupportgroups.pdf
Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs)
AAAs are overseen by the state unit on aging, in this case Roberta at Aging Services.
AAAs provide or contract for supportive services for grandparents and other relatives raising
children through the federal National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP). The NFCSP
was enacted in 2000 and has been a very successful source of support for family caregivers of
older individuals, in addition to grandparents and other relatives raising children. According to
federal law, each state may use up to 10% of its NFCSP funding to provide five categories of
supportive services to grandparents and other relatives age 55 and older who are raising
children. The five categories are:
(1) information to caregivers about available services;
(2) assistance to caregivers in gaining access to the services;
(3) individual counseling, organization of support groups, and caregiver training to assist
the caregivers in the areas of health, nutrition, and financial literacy and in making decisions
and solving problems relating to their caregiving roles;
(4) respite care to enable caregivers to be temporarily relieved from their caregiving
responsibilities; and
(5) supplemental services, on a limited basis, to complement the care provided by
caregivers.
Connecticut uses all 10% of its NFCSP funds for grandparents and other relatives raising
children.
AAA for the eastern area of Connecticut:
Senior Resources Agency on Aging
This AAA provides respite services, supplemental services like one time health-related items or
service options designed to help “fill the gap”, and caregiver support groups.
Marion Donato
Caregivers Program Coordinator
19 Ohio Avenue, Suite 2
Norwich, Connecticut 06360
(860) 887-3561
Toll Free in CT: (800) 690-6998
[email protected]
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www.seniorresourcesec.org
Respite services/supplemental services/application form:
www.seniorresourcesec.org/caregivers/grandparent.shtml?expandable=4
Support groups: www.seniorresourcesec.org/caregivers/support.shtml?expandable=4
Resource guide: www.seniorresourcesec.org/caregivers/PDFs/grandparent_relative_guide.pdf
AAA for the south central area of Connecticut:
Agency on Aging of South Central Connecticut
This AAA contracts with the Consultation Center in New Haven (see entry below) to provide
services to grandparents and other relatives raising children. Caregivers can contact the
Consultation Center directly.
Betsy Wieland
Respite Care Coordinator
One Long Wharf Drive
New Haven, CT 06511
(203) 785-8533
Toll Free in CT: (800) 994-9422
[email protected]
http://aoapartnerships.org/
Southwestern Connecticut Agency on Aging – Southwestern Connecticut Agency on Aging
provides grant funding to the Child and Family Guidance Center (see entry below) to provide
services to grandparents and other relatives raising children. Caregivers can contact the Child
and Family Guidance Center directly.
Christina Crain
Director of Programs
10 Middle Street
Bridgeport, CT 06604
(203) 333-9288, extension 186
Toll Free in CT: (800) 811-9808
[email protected]
www.swcaa.org/pages/caregiver-resources/caregiver-programs-resources/deg-grandparentsraising-children.php
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AAA for the north central area of Connecticut:
North Central Area Agency on Aging (NCAAA)
This AAA provides assistance to family caregivers in gaining access to available services such as
caregiver support groups and respite services. While many services are provided directly by
agency staff, NCAAA also contracts with a number of community providers, including Catholic
Charities (see entry below). Caregivers can call the NCAAA for a list of providers or contact
Catholic Charities directly.
Maureen McIntyre
Assistant Director
151 New Park Avenue, Box 75
Hartford, Connecticut 06106
(860) 724-6443 extension 283
Toll Free in CT: (800) 994-9422
[email protected]
www.ncaaact.org/index.php/programs/ct-family-caregiver-program/ See the application for
services on that page.
AAA for the western area of Connecticut:
Western Connecticut Area Agency on Aging
This AAA contracts with the local YMCA to provide a monthly support group for grandparents
raising grandchildren during the school year, and a summer day camp for the children. While
the caregivers meet in their support group, the children engage in other activities at the YMCA.
The group and camp are open to all kinship families.
Through another contract with Connecticut Legal Services (see entry below), low income
caregivers have access to legal services. Connecticut Legal Services also provides legal
community education through the support group.
The AAA offers emergency funding for onetime items like beds for the children. They have
some flexibility with eligibility requirements for this funding, and they do not require caregivers
to complete applications for these programs.
These programs are open to grandparents raising minor grandchildren age 18 and under.
The only program that requires an application is for in-home respite provided through the
National Family Caregiver Support Program. That program is limited to grandparents or other
relatives age 55 and older caring full-time for adults ages 18-59 with a severe disability.
Livia Fiordelisi
Coordinator, National Family Caregiver Support Program
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84 Progress Lane
Waterbury, CT 06705
(203)757-5449, extension 116
Toll Free in CT: (800) 994-9422
[email protected]
www.wcaaa.org
Catholic Charities/Institute for the Hispanic Family - with a grant from the North Central AAA
(see entry above), they offer a weekly support group to kinship caregivers and provide them
with counseling; there are no eligibility requirements for these services. Because the
grandparent program is housed in the “Institute for the Hispanic Family” they also have access
to mental health services, a food bank, and financial assistance with utilities and rent; the
caregivers must be at poverty level for these services. Also, if the grandparents have children
between ages 3 to 5, the Institute has a school readiness program available for 60 children on a
sliding fee scale. It is open from 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM, which is important for many of the young
grandparents who are working. To access the child care, the caregiver must be a Hartford
resident. Finally, they also offer a Senior Center, that’s open from 8:30 to 4:30 and provides
breakfast, lunch and activities to anyone 60 and older. All of their services are provided by
bilingual staff.
Carmen Dosal
Program Director, Institute for the Hispanic Family
45 Wadsworth Street
Hartford, CT 06106
(860) 527-1124, extension 256
[email protected]
www.ccaoh.org/index.html
Center for Children's Advocacy – engage in advocacy work for kinship families, and in particular
worked on HB 6336 in 2011, which changed Connecticut’s statutory language concerning foster
care licensing waivers.
Sarah Eagan
Director, Child Abuse Project
65 Elizabeth Street
Hartford, CT 06105
(860) 570-5327
[email protected]
www.kidscounsel.org/index.html
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Child and Family Guidance Center – with grant funding from the Southwestern Connecticut
Agency on Aging, they provide support groups for grandparents raising grandchildren and a
group for teenagers being raised by grandparents. There are no financial eligibility
requirements for services.
They offer two small caregiver support groups that focus on personal issues. These groups
meet eight times in the spring and eight times in the fall, and they include pizza for dinner and
child care so the caregivers can participate. They also offer a larger monthly meeting of
grandparents with their grandchildren. This group focuses on resources and brings in guest
speakers. Speakers include local lawyers, judges, and nutrition people. For one meeting, a vice
president from the trust department of a local bank came with blank forms so grandparents
could complete wills. A local vocational high school provides dinner to families.
The teenager group meets twice a month, and a mental health staff person works with the
youth. The group also does recreational activities.
As part of a larger agency, the kinship families can gain access to other services as well.
Suzanne Wallace
Director, Parenting Academy
180 Fairfield Ave.
Bridgeport, CT 06604
(203) 394-6529, extension 3025
[email protected]
www.cfguidance.org/GrandparentKinRaising.aspx
Children’s Law Center of Connecticut - offers a free telephone law line that parents,
grandparents, foster parents, other relatives, teachers, and friends can call and talk to a lawyer
about family law issues. There are no financial eligibility requirements for using the law line.
The intake person collects information from the caller, a paralegal works on the issue and gives
basic information, which is reviewed by an attorney; if the caller has more complicated legal
questions, an attorney will take the call. The caller may also get referrals to other legal service
providers.
The Children Law Center’s attorneys also represent children in contested custody and visitation
disputes for free if they are indigent as determined by the family court and are involved in a
case with exacerbating issues such as child abuse, domestic violence, neglect, mental illness,
substance abuse, or chronic conflict.
Justine Rakich-Kelly
Director
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30 Arbor Street
Hartford, CT 06106
(860) 232-9993
Toll Free in CT: (888) LAW-DOOR
[email protected]
www.clcct.org
City of Hartford’s Grandparents Program/Department of Health & Human Services – serves
over 500 grandparents raising grandchildren in the City of Hartford. The bilingual City staff
provides case management, counseling, home visits, education, and support groups. They work
with many community partners including the Community Renewal Team, Catholic Charities,
and Village for Children and Families. For the last nine years, a total of about 30 community
partners have come together during the yearly Grandparents Day Family Fair, the second
Saturday in September, during which resource information for the families is shared and there
are fun activities for the caregivers and children. The next one is Saturday, September 8, 2012
from 11 to 3 in Bushnell Park.
Milagros Acosta
830 Maple Ave
Hartford, CT 06114
860-757-0853
[email protected]
www.hartford.gov
Community Renewal Team, Inc. (CRT) – manages the services onsite at “Generations,” in
addition to offering services to kinship families who do not live at the housing. Generations is
affordable, subsidized housing that consists of 24 newly-constructed multi-bedroom town
houses for the kinship families, and 16 large on-bedroom apartments for independent seniors.
Bilingual staff offers case management, support groups, individual and family counseling, and
education at the campus in Northeast Hartford. CRT Generations does not have any income
requirements except for the housing. The housing is managed through The Meadows Real
Estate Development Corporation. Generations also collaborates with many community partners
to better serve kinship families. A key partner is the University of Connecticut, which works
with CRT to provide a unique one-weekend summer camp for grandparents and their older
grandchildren. CRT Grandparent University promotes higher education by allowing
grandfamilies to experience first-hand the University campus and college life.
Carmen Stanford
Program Manager, Generations
35 Clark Street
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Hartford, CT 06120
(860) 895-6605
[email protected]
www.crtct.org/Programs/Generations.htm
Connecticut Association of Foster and Adoptive Parents (CAFAP) –provides training, advocacy,
and support to foster and adoptive parents, and relatives. CAFAP does not have a separate
program for relatives, but anything that is available to non-related foster and adoptive parents
is also available to relatives.
Margaret M. Doherty
Executive Director
2189 Silas Deane Highway, Suite 2
Rocky Hill, CT 06067
(860) 258-3400
Toll Free: (800) 861-8838
[email protected]
www.cafap.com
Maintains a list of support groups for relative caregivers and others across the state:
www.cafap.com/cgi/site/pdfs/support1.pdf
The Consultation Center - provides relative caregivers with a range of services and supports,
including support group meetings, a monthly calendar, parenting skills training, respite
opportunities, and legislative advocacy. Membership is open to any grandparent or other
relative raising children under age 18 throughout Greater New Haven. Individuals wishing to
join must complete an application.
There are three monthly support groups. There are two morning groups that meet the first and
third Monday of each month, 10:30 to noon at The Consultation Center. The groups are
caregiver-driven and they decide on topics and direction. No child supervisors are available. In
the evening, the third group meets on the fourth Monday of each month, 6 to 8 PM, also at The
Consultation Center. A light dinner is provided, in addition to special programming for children
ages 4 to 14. Other meetings are scheduled with outside speakers and/or about special
projects, which are included in the monthly calendar.
The Center also offers a teen club; a young boys club ages 7-12; and a young girls club for ages
7- 12. The youth in the clubs decide what they want to do with the money provided.
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For respite and socializing, members have enjoyed picnics, holiday bowling events, trips to a
local amusement park, and an annual Grandfamily Camping Retreat at Camp Hazen in Chester,
CT. Additional respite opportunities are provided through a lottery to the people who attend
the support groups. For example, they will award $25 gift cards to a restaurant, so the
caregivers can have a night out. Two times a year, they have special dinners; one in November,
known as the Thank Goodness for Grandparents Dinner, and in June, a graduation party
celebrating graduates from pre-school to graduate school.
Kathleen Lutz
Coordinator of Grandparent Programs
389 Whitney Avenue
New Haven, CT 06511
(203) 789-7645
[email protected]
www.theconsultationcenter.org
FAVOR - serves families, including kinship families, children and youth dealing with a broad
spectrum of behavioral and mental health needs, by providing family and policy advocacy.
FAVOR has family advocates, who are mostly parents of children with similar issues, who teach
other families how to access services for their special needs children. AFCAMP is a partner
agency of FAVOR (see entry above for AFCAMP).
Hal Gibber
Executive Director
2138 Silas Deane Highway
Rocky Hill, CT 06067-2317
(860) 563-3232, extension 201
[email protected]
www.favor-ct.org/
Grandparents on the Move –is a school district sponsored program that provides a support
group and other services to relative caregivers/kinship families of students attending the school
district. The group meets regularly in a local school. There are no eligibility requirements other
than the children attend the school district. They offer Thanksgiving and Christmas programs
for the families and workshops on topics like special education, health care, and
custodial/probate issues, in addition to making service referrals to other programs. The group
has been involved in advocacy efforts at the local, state, and federal level, including
participating in the GrandRallies in Washington, DC.
Louis (Lou) Campbell
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80 Hamilton Street
New Haven, CT 06511
(203) 946-5772 or (206) 946-7443
[email protected]
Probate Courts – throughout Connecticut have access to two funds – the Kinship Fund and the
Respite Fund -- which are administered by the Connecticut Children’s Trust Fund. These Funds
can provide limited financial assistance to grandparent and other relative caregivers who (1)
obtain guardianship of the children through probate court or (2) who obtain guardianship of
the children through juvenile court and do not receive any monthly subsidies from DCF. To
qualify for either one or both funds, caregivers must meet poverty guidelines and apply to the
probate court; the judge decides whether to grant the request.
The Kinship Fund offers a maximum of $500 per child or a maximum of $2000 per family (for
four or more children), one time a year. These funds are to be used for the benefit of the child
and could be used to cover expenses such as the child’s eyeglasses, dental care, school supplies
or extracurricular activity fees. The Respite Fund is a maximum of $2000 per family, per year
and is intended for the benefit of the whole family to cover expenses like auto repairs or
outstanding utility bills.
To find out more and apply, contact the local probate court. For a directory of all the probate
courts in the state, go to www.jud.ct.gov/probate/ and click the “directory” link in the middle of
the page.
Salvation Army – offers a support group, respite camp, case management, and wrap around
services for kinship families. There are no eligibility requirements for the program, other than
the grandparent must have or be pursuing legal custody or guardianship of the grandchildren,
and live in Greater Hartford. The caregiver support group meets monthly in the evening, and
staff works with the children while the group is meeting. In addition, families are connected
with a grandparent advocate, who works with them. They explore the families’ issues, living
arrangements, help them navigate the justice system, and do case management. They provide
wrap around services through other Salvation Army program and external referrals. A one
week summer camp for the children and caregivers, with separate lodging, gives the family
members much needed respite.
Marylyn Hardrick
Human Services Bureau Manager
217 Washington St.
Hartford, CT 06106
(860) 543-8413, extension 115
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[email protected]
www.use.salvationarmy.org/use/www_use.nsf
Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut, Inc. – is a telephone hotline that helps low income
individuals, including relative caregivers, with many different non-criminal legal issues,
including family, employment, public benefits, housing and consumer problems like
bankruptcy. Hotline call-in hours are 9 AM to 3 PM on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and
Fridays; and on Wednesdays from 12 to 3 PM. There is no charge for the hotline or legal
services, but in order to use them, individuals must have very low incomes. The general
requirement is that individuals have incomes at or below 125% of the federal poverty level. For
people 60 years old or older who may have incomes higher than this, they may contact the
legal aid office closest to them, all of which are listed on the website below.
Toll Free for most of CT: (800) 453-3320
From Middletown and Hartford, call Toll Free: (860) 344-0380
www.slsct.org/get-help
United Way of Connecticut 2-1-1 - funded in part by the State of Connecticut, is an online and
telephone line connection to local services, including utility assistance, food, housing, child
care, after school programs, legal aid service providers, and crisis intervention. The program
has three components that help individuals, including kinship families, throughout the state:
(1) Warm line available by dialing 2-1-1 in Connecticut that is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week by multilingual staff. (2) Searchable online database of a wide variety of programs and
services, including those specifically for kinship families. (3) 2-1-1 navigator, which is a custom
online benefits search; the individual types in his or her information and obtains a list of
services specific to that person and family. Additional information is available for kinship
families at the website’s eLibrary.
Theresa Baylock
1344 Silas Deane Highway
Rocky Hill, CT 06067
(860) 571-7500
Toll Free in CT: 2-1-1
[email protected]
www.infoline.org
Searchable database: www.infoline.org/focus/kinshiplist.asp
211 Navigator: www.211navigator.com/
eLibrary: www.infoline.org/focus/kinshiplist.asp
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