Preserving Family Connections through Kinship Care

It’s a sunny afternoon and the sounds of a sweet, bubbly preschooler playing outside fill what might normally be an air of silence - the cackling of joy and laughter that might not have been possible just a short time ago. 

“He’s my little buddy,” says Lisa Todd, who got a phone call in 2020 that her infant cousin Jayvonta needed a temporary safe place to stay.

Family means everything to Lisa, so there was no hesitation. And fast forward four years, Jayvonta is now a permanent part of Lisa's immediate family.

When children can no longer safely stay at home with their parents, Franklin County Children Services prioritizes finding family-like settings to place youth and, when possible, in kinship-related homes. This would include family relatives - grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, or adult siblings - or close family friends such as teachers and coaches, church members, or neighbors.

By keeping children connected to their family or the neighborhoods they are accustomed to, kinship placements aid in avoiding additional trauma and help young people maintain their culture, traditions, and heritage during times of separation.

September is National Kinship Care Month, when we honor and celebrate the support kinship plays in providing stability and love to children in need across Franklin County.

Jayvonta came into Lisa's life when his parents’ “tumultuous relationship” meant he couldn’t safely stay with him, she remembers. As an experienced foster parent, Lisa immediately stepped up when she heard about Jayvonta’s situation.

This North Linden resident and case manager at Franklin County Job and Family Services knew that she could help keep this newborn safer while maintaining his family connection. Between Lisa and her own immediate family, Jayvonta would have a circle of caring and responsible relatives to offer support, assistance, and childcare if needed.

“He gets all the attention,” Lisa says of this energetic, outgoing four-year-old with a dazzling smile who loves to ride his bike and help in the garden.

Jayvonta affectionately calls Lisa “LeeLee” and one of their favorite rituals together is nightly story time. TaTa, as he’s known by his loved ones, is currently in his “demanding” phase, Lisa says laughing. “He wants to do everything himself now…and be a baby at the same time.”

Being Jayvonta’s caregiver has meant everything to Lisa, she shares, emphasizing how important it was to her for this young boy to maintain family connections.

Kinship care “helps kids have a sense that they’re still a part of a family and it also gives family members an opportunity to help family,” she says. “If you have the space and energy and time to commit then it’s a great coming together. It keeps the bond.”

To learn more about kinship and how caregivers like Lisa Todd are helping to keep kids safer and preserve family ties, visit the Kinship page of the FCCS website by clicking here.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First Forever Family Funfest Celebrates Power of Permanency

Image
Celebrating the nearly 300 children who found “forever homes” over the past year through adoption or finalization of a kinship placement, Franklin County Children Services hosted its first Forever Family Funfest. “When children can no longer safely remain in their parents’ custody, they deserve to have the permanent sense of belonging that comes with finding a family,” said Raquel Breckenridge, Family Service Director for Permanency. “And we want to celebrate those lasting connections.” Over the past year, more than 100 children and teenagers who were in the agency’s care found their forever homes through adoption. In addition, almost 200 children were permanently placed with family relatives - grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, or adult siblings - or close family friends such as teachers and coaches, church members, or neighbors. Dozens of those children and teens who found their forever homes through adoption or permanent kinship placement, along with their families and caregiv...
Read more

FCCS Volunteers Comfort, Care for Children during Crisis

Image
As a volunteer in Franklin County Children Services’ Crisis Center, Michalle DiGiovine fondly recalls dining on “pretend food” and playing “restaurant” with a promising culinary staff of five young children as they tried out recipes prepared on a plastic range.  “It felt good that they could come to me - a stranger - to pretend and laugh a little,” she said, remembering how she connected with the youngsters, all the under the age of 10, who had just endured an extremely traumatic experience at home. As January is National Mentoring Month, it’s a great time to recognize the Crisis Center volunteers who help protect children by allowing them to escape from tumultuous situations for a time and feel safe and cared for.  Mentors and volunteers play an important role at FCCS in surrounding children who come into the agency’s care with kindness and support, letting children know they are not alone. It’s part of the agency’s strategy to protect the “whole” child - mind, body, and hear...
Read more

Creating Forever Families, FCCS Caseworker Celebrates 500th Adoption

Image
Finding lifelong, lasting family connections for children is all in a day’s work for adoptions assessor Liska Hall, a 26-year veteran at Franklin County Children Services. And in March, this exceptional child welfare professional reached a remarkable milestone, facilitating her 500th adoption.  “I have loved being able to provide permanence for 500 kids,” she said.  “I love that I will be the last social worker that they will have and that they will go on and have typical lives without caseworkers involved. I love it when the family is so happy and excited about the adoption and that this child is now theirs, forever!”   Going into the child welfare field made perfect sense to Ms. Hall, who was the first person in her family to attend college. She notes that she’s always been the kind of person who has looked out for others.  “I was a ‘social worker’ in high school,” she recalled. “I was the mom of the group, making sure everyone got home safely. None of my frie...
Read more