On Wednesday, Sept. 5, the subcommittee of the Palm Beach County Family Caregiver Coalition held a celebration luncheon honoring grandparents raising grandchildren.
The luncheon was held at the Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service, and festivities included entertainment, door prizes and soul line dancing. More than 90 participants, including grandparents, children and community service providers, attended the celebration.
There are more than 15,000 grandparents managing these responsibilities in Palm Beach County. In recognition of National Grandparents Day, Commissioner Paulette Burdick presented a first-of-its-kind proclamation honoring the caregivers and designated Sept. 5 as Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Day in Palm Beach County. Michelle McGovern was also in attendance on behalf of U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.
Subcommittee members included the American Association of Caregiving Youth, Families First of Palm Beach County, the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County, Morse Life and the Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service/University of Florida.
“It was great to have an event that recognizes grandparents and all they do for the grandchildren in their care,” said Denise Chin, program director of kin support at Families First. “They are the unsung heroes who are an inspiration to us all.”
For additional information and resources for grandparents raising grandchildren, call Families First at (561) 318-4224, MorseLife at (561) 289-8578 or GRandS Program at (561) 233-1742. National Grandparents Day was Sept. 9 and is always observed the first Sunday after Labor Day.
Families First is helping families learn how to become productive and successful members of their community. It has established a 22-year history of ensuring families develop resiliency to crisis situations, learning how to increase and maintain social connections, and enhance the knowledge and implementation of parenting and child development skills. Families First staff works with each of its 1,300 families in Palm Beach County, teaching them how to create a safe, secure and nurturing environment for their children. Families who seek to build a better quality of life for their children benefit from the agency’s six diverse programs that provide a way to reduce barriers impacting family stability. For more information, visit www.familiesfirstpbc.org.
Above: Ronney Wiener, Lisa Cunningham, Connie Siskowski, County Commissioner Paulette Burdick, Denise Chin and Sue Bartolomeo.
