‘It’s not easy’: Kinship caregivers have local support classes option

About 60,000 children in Indiana are being cared for full-time by relatives that aren’t their parents.  It’s called kinship care.  And as IPR’s Thomas Ouellette reports, there’s a program available designed to help kinship carers receive support.

Children in kinship care account for about four percent of Indiana’s children, according to the national Kids Count report. 

Vicki Hornbaker’s great-granddaughter is one of them.  Hornbaker has cared for her since she was five.  She’s 11 now. 

“It’s not easy. And sometimes it’s expensive. But if you don’t know what to do legally, it’s impossible,” Hornbaker said. “We’re fortunate. She’s an amazing, well-adjusted girl and is just doing great. And that’s what it’s about.”

Grandparents are the most common kinship caregivers. The U.S Census Bureau reports in 2022 about 2.1 million grandparents were responsible for their grandchildren. That equates to 62 percent of all kinship households.

Hornbaker hosts “Parents a Second Time Around” meetings at LifeStream Services – shorthanded as PASTA.  The free 6-to-8-week program teaches kinship carers about legal and medical issues, and social and educational aspects of the job they’ve taken on.

Hornbaker understands the uncertainty it comes with and wants caregivers to know they aren’t alone.

“They need to know that they’re not in it by their selves because that’s really hard,” she said. “PASTA does bring that to the table so that you don’t feel like you’re out there swinging on it, all by yourself, trying to figure out what you’re doing.”

Hornbaker and other officials at LifeStream believe the need for programs like PASTA is going to grow over time, and that building a community of kinship caregivers is the best way to help each other succeed

PASTA meets every Tuesday night from 6:00 -7:00 pm. The next meeting will have an attorney present to answer questions from caregivers. Officials from LifeStream say attending the meetings will not negatively impact any families who are going through the legal custody process. 

LifeStream Services is an IPR underwriter.

Thomas Ouellette is our reporter and producer.  Contact him at thomas.ouellette@bsu.edu.