Kinship
The Journey Is Only Beginning
I have spent the past twenty-five years providing social services for children afflicted with trauma. I began my career working with children who lived in a domestic violence shelter. I…
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What Celebrating the Holidays Looks Like for Kinship Families
When you sit and think about your favorite childhood memories, what comes to mind? For me, it’s the holiday season. It starts with Halloween, goes right into Thanksgiving and Christmas…
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A Community Comes Together to Support a Family
An aunt and uncle have legal custody of their 4-year-old niece, who had been the victim of shaken baby syndrome at 4 months of age. As a result, she has…
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Interview with Veronica Burroughs
For OhioKAN’s second anniversary, we interviewed Veronica Burroughs, OhioKAN’s Project Manager from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Veronica has been with the program since its origin. We…
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A Kinship Family Story
Ashleigh Jordan takes care of five children. She’s a working single mom in Cincinnati who, with two kids of her own, took in three more. She’s what we call a…
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Coping with Feelings of Abandonment
Abandonment. The word alone can trigger feelings of angst, worry, isolation, rejection…the list is quite extensive. For many children finding themselves in a home away from their norm, emotions are…
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Bridging the Age Gap Between Kinship Caregivers and Children
My mother was 39 and my father was 37 when I was born. There were times when this age difference was challenging for me as a child. The almost 40-year…
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Road Trip of an Adoptive Mom
In 2008, our family adopted our youngest son from the foster care system. Prior to adoption, my husband and I dove in headfirst, educating ourselves on what to expect, researching,…
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Supporting Children During an Ongoing Pandemic
Being a caretaker of a child who has experienced traumatic events is challenging. In the best situations, you’ve gathered a support team and resources that might include school personnel, mental…
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The Importance of Caregiver Self-Care
New kinship and adoptive families typically experience major changes in their daily lives and routines. Self-care is essential to establishing stability for the child or children in your care. At the base level, self-care is “the act of…
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