What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humour comfort and lessons in life – Rudy Guiliani
This week is grandparents raising grandchildren awareness week and to celebrate we would like to honour and celebrate the grandparents who are raising their grandchildren full-time.
The awareness week is organised by the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust (GRG) a registered not for profit organisation that provides nationwide support services, to around 6000 full-time grandparent and whanau carers in New Zealand.
Diane Vivian, the founder of GRG set up the trust in New Zealand after pinpointing the demand and need for extra support for grandparents who are raising grandchildren on their own, due to family difficulties, and other issues. For more than 95% of the families, they work with the grandparents have become full-time caregivers as a result of a traumatic event or family breakdown where there have been serious issues with the parents. In these circumstances, if it wasn’t for the grandparents or family taking on the responsibility for the care of the grandchildren/kin the children would be faced with state care.
The fallout for both the grandchildren and grandparents is life changing and requires a deep understanding of their needs as they work to reform their family and rebuild the lives of the children.
An admirable initiative, this is the place to be for grandparents raising grandchildren, or even for grandparents to simply find support among others like them to bring bright, loved and caring individuals within our children into the world!
We strongly suggest you look up the site, and add your support, kind words, or even join with this great community!
To all the grandparents who are caring for their grandchildren full or part time, thank you. It is a privilege to have people like yourselves, sharing your knowledge and wisdom and showing love to our younger generations.
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