What’s for Lunch?

The Grands Are Back!

By Beth A. Klahre

The Brunswick Center at Supply is bursting with new youthful energy! After a long hiatus due to COVID-19, the center is excited to welcome back grandparents and grandchildren. Starting on Oct. 5 and continuing for 25 weeks, grandparents and older family members who have stepped in to raise grandchildren and younger children in their families will be attending Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. The program is run by Communities in Schools (CIS). The Brunswick Center at Supply provides the ballroom space that enables families to meet to get extra support with the challenges that come along with parenting.

The support group is targeted to grandparents who have guardianship or custody of their grandchildren in Brunswick County. Attendees exchange ideas, share information, develop and practice new parenting skills, learn about community resources, and most importantly, give and receive support from each other.

Expert Group Oversight

Kristine Novak, CIS Director, Parenting Education says, “A parent educator who has been with CIS for eight years and is a trained group facilitator oversees the support group. But the discussions are actually led by the grandparents. Topics depend on what the group members want to talk about and what new insights they are looking to gain.” Future sessions will also include speakers from the community.

CIS provides childcare for the meetings. An activity or art project is offered and help with homework is available. Attendees enjoy a family-style dinner before the meeting begins. Novak explains, “We like the dinner to be a family-style so our staff can sit down with everyone before breaking off into child and parent groups.”

The Adventure of Raising Grands

The Brunswick Center at Supply Director Melissa Starr says that the main goal of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren is to provide another means of help and support to older adults who have taken on this new adventure of raising children.

“Caring for children reintroduces these grandparents and seniors back into an active parenting role,” Starr says. “For many, this comes at a point when they may have been shifting their energies into more of a retirement phase. They may need help navigating this new world of child rearing. ”

The Communi es in Schools Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support group at the Brunswick Center at Supply is run by CIS facilitators (le to right) Emma Lou Edwards, Kris ne Novak, Oleater Stanley, and Vernell Murray-Stevenson.

Incentives!

Incentives are awarded for attending Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. “We understand that gas is not cheap. Nor is transportation. We understand this and want to make coming to the sessions a little easier,” explains Novak. A gas gift card is provided to each participant after attending five sessions. After completing ten additional sessions, a second gas card is provided.

Registration is required to attend the sessions held on the first and third Wednesday of every month. Contact Kristine Novak at 910-946-1637 or email knovak@cisbrunswick.org.