Stepping Up Again, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
Lawrence, MA
Rising Star (2025)
Stepping Up Again, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, located in Lawrence, Massachusetts, is a recent program within AgeSpan’s Family Caregiver Support Program. AgeSpan is a fifty-year-old agency serving older adults. Stepping Up Again, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren has operated year-round for three years, and serves 35 grandfamilies of 50+ grandchildren from birth through 22-years. Their service model features scholarships and stipends to support flexibility and service options, as well as transportation to remove barriers to service access, expanding the existing 12-month basic respite services previously offered by AgeSpan. In addition to increasing the number of respite options for families, Stepping Up Again, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren works to increase the number of grandfamilies served through targeted engagement, including underserved populations. As part of a person- and family-centered service approach, social determinants of health are assessed for each grandfamily, and program staff help families obtain programs and services in addition to respite that help address nutrition, housing, transportation, benefit enrollment, and safety according to family needs and priorities. Valid and reliable measures of caregiver wellness, including measures of caregiver stress and caregiver strain, are part of ongoing program evaluation.
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