• Kinship caregivers provide stability to children who need it most.Mother and son image by Alexey Stiop from Fotolia.com
  
  A kinship caregiver is someone other than a child's biological parents. In many cases, kinship caregivers can be divided into two groups: foster parents and non foster parents. The latter group is often comprised of grandparents, aunts/uncles, siblings, or close family friends that provide full time care for a child.
  
  According to the 2,000 U.S. Census approximately 4.5 million children are living in homes led by grandparent-headed households. Additionally, another 1.5 million children are living in households led by other relatives. In many cases, these kinship caregivers come to the aid of children at a time of crisis. As such, providing emergency or unexpected full time parenting services can create both emotional and financial strain.
  
  To provide relief for kinship caregivers there are grants that award financial assistance.
  
  

Kinship Navigator Programs

• Grandparents and other kinship caregivers benefit from localities using grant funds to develop local Kinship Navigator Programs.grandparents with grandchild image by Pavel Losevsky from Fotolia.com
  
  Kinship Navigator Programs provide grants to help kinship caregivers utilize existing programs and services to address the needs of the children they are raising. Intended grant recipients (states, large metropolitan areas, and Indian tribal organizations) must use grant funds to establish kinship navigator programs.
  
  Funds are distributed annually for up to three years. The Kinship Navigator Program is administered by the U.S. Administration for Children and Families within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Department advertises a Request for Proposal or RFP annually to receive funds.
  
  For more information on a how to apply for this funding, please contact:
  
  Administration for Children and Families
  
  370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
  
  Washington, D.C. 20447
  
  1-800-424-2246
  
  ach.hhs.gov
  
  

Family Connection Grants

• Families come in all shapes and sizes. Foster parents and extended families often step in for children in crisis.family image by Mat Hayward from Fotolia.com
  
  Family Connection Grants help applicants establish or improve programs that will connect children, in, or at risk of entering foster care, to their families. State, local, and tribal child welfare agencies and nonprofit agencies that have experience serving children in foster or kinship care can apply for $15 million in grants available each year to establish or expand Kinship Navigator Programs, Family Group Decision Making and other programs to assist kinship caregivers
  
  Up to 30 new grants are made available each year and the funding ranges from one to three years.
  
  The Department advertises a Request for Proposal or RFP annually to receive funds.
  
  For more information on a how to apply for this funding, please contact:
  
  Administration for Children and Families
  
  370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
  
  Washington, D.C. 20447
  
  1-800-424-2246
  
  ach.hhs.gov
  
  

Kinship Care Subsidy Program

• Kinship caregivers are often eligible for cash assistance from state departments of social service. Check to see if your state has a program similar to Louisiana's program.double portrait image by Renata Osinska from Fotolia.com
  
  The previous two grant programs--Kinship Navigator and Family Connections Programs--are focused on funding states, localities and organizations that administer programs throughout the country. The Kinship Care Subsidy Program is a program directed towards the actual kinship caregiver in Louisiana. Similar programs can be found in New York and New Jersey.
  
  The Louisiana program provides assistance to kinship caregivers that obtain a form of legal custody within a year and have an income below 150 percent of the federal poverty threshold. Additionally, the caregiver cannot have certain criminal convictions or house either of the child's parents in the home. Caregivers can receive of $280 per month for each qualifying child.
  
  For more information about how to apply for this program. Please contact
  
  Louisiana Department of Social Services
  
  Office of Family Support
  
  627 N. Fourth Street
  
  Baton Rouge, LA 70802
  
  (225) 342-0286
  
  dss.la.state.us