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Caregiver News Fall 2002
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A milestone was reached for children and caregivers when the defacto custodian and interested third party law went into effect August 1, following unanimous passage by the 2002 Minnesota Legislature. The law provides three avenues to obtain custody: a custody consent decree; as a defacto custodian; or as an interested third party. • Custody Consent Decree. Legal and physical custody can be transferred when the parties agree. • Defacto Custodian. A caregiver can seek custody if he or she has been the primary caregiver for a specific period of time and the parent has refused or neglected to comply with parental duties. • Interested Third Party. A third party may file a petition for custody if it can be proven the parent has abandoned or neglected the child; placement of the child with the third party takes priority over preserving the day-to-day parent-child relationship due to the presence of physical or emotional danger; or any other extraordinary circumstances. “The law seeks to protect a child’s fundamental right to be raised in a safe, stable, and nurturing environment,” said Laurie Hanson, MKCA President. “It requires a child-focused analysis to determine a custody dispute between a parent and a third party.” Much Needs to be Done What do an estimated 71,000 children in Minnesota have in common? They are living in kinship families – with grandparents, other relatives, and family friends. Children living in kinship families is not new. Traditionally, when parents have been unable or unwilling to care for their children, the extended family has been the most common source of help. That tradition continues to this day. However, as times have changed, it has become more difficult for kinship families to meet the needs of these children. Caring for children many times requires having a “legal” relationship to the child in order to access even the most basic services for children, such as school enrollment or special education services. Also, many kinship caregivers are not prepared for the additional financial responsibilities the children bring or able to provide access to needed health care coverage. Recognizing these barriers, Minnesota has developed a variety of responses to help. Special provisions of the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) are designed specifically to assist kinship caregivers raising children. These include financial assistance through “child only” grants and medical assistance for children. A great deal more needs to be done to assist kinship families. Minnesota Kinship Caregivers Association was organized to better understand those needs and to help develop resources to meet them. MKCA’s board of directors; Sharon Durken, our outreach coordinator; and I are working hard on initiatives to help caregivers and the children they’re parenting. We need your assistance to do so. Whether you’re a kinship caregiver, a professional who serves kinship families, or share our interest in helping these special families, please contact us and share that interest. There is much you can do to help. Grant Helping Caregivers A $450,000 grant has been awarded to MKCA by the Minnesota Board on Aging and the local Agencies on Aging to fund programs to help meet the needs of people 60 years and older who are primary caregivers for grandchildren and other young ones. “The Minnesota Board on Aging and local Agencies on Aging deserve credit for recognizing the needs of the caregivers and the children they’re raising,” said Chris Clauson, MKCA’s executive director. In addition, the grant is funding a research project conducted by Priscilla Gibson, Ph.D. University of Minnesota. The study will identify the challenges confronting caregivers and their families. Person to Person: Don’t let Virginia Clark’s height of 4' 6" and gentle manner fool you. This quiet, diminutive 74-year-old lady is a powerhouse of energy. A grandmother raising her granddaughter, Wachel, Virginia is a charter member of MKCA and secretary of its board of directors. She is also active in Eastern Star, the Church of St. Thomas Episcopal, Minneapolis; and Sabathani Community Center's senior group. At Sabathani, Virginia especially enjoys line dancing, trips, and other events. Virginia began participating in a support group for people raising grandchildren soon after her granddaughter, then three years old, came to live with her following the death of the little girl’s mother,Virginia’s daughter. “For 10 years, the support group has given me a lot of emotional support and encouragement; just to know I’m not alone is reassuring,” said Virginia. When she began parenting Wachel, Virginia’s plans to travel, made when she retired, were put on hold. “All of a sudden, I had a child in the house again, and I had to readjust my life to meet her needs,” Virginia said. Wachel brings joy to Virginia. “It means so much to hear my granddaughter say, ‘I love you a lot,’” Virginia stated. “Wachel keeps me young and with the times, she entertains me with her singing and dancing, and my house is busy with all of her friends and sleepovers.” Virginia takes pride in MKCA’s evolvement. “I’m very pleased with MKCA’s accomplishments, especially reaching out to help grandparents throughout Minnesota; working on getting the third party defacto custody legislation enacted into law; and receiving the Minnesota Board on Aging grant,” she said. |