Dear friends – As we bring the year to a close, we are looking at some big changes in spreading the word about A Kinship Guide to Rescuing Children for Grandparents and Other Relatives As Parents. This has been quite a year. I know very well that each of us carries plenty of experiences from 2008 – some good, some very challenging.
▪ We will be changing the look of the newsletter and some content. We look forward to your feedback on the next Kinship Care Notes.
▪ We also look forward to partnering with a solid distributor that will serve bookstores across the country.
▪ Third on our list is to change the website to include an interactive piece that offers links to articles and feedback www.chicagoroadpublishing.com.
▪ The site will improve to accept credit cards for multiple and discounted orders.
▪ In addition, talks to groups and media are already scheduled for the new year. Whew!
More news: On January 20, 2009, a child of kinship care, Barak Obama, will become the President of the United States. To celebrate this special day for all kinship care families we are extending the 50% special of A Kinship Guide to Rescuing Children for Grandparents and Other Relatives As Parents. Order just 5 books and get each at 50% off. Please see the order form at the end of this newsletter.
As you begin the new year you may want to sign up for some valuable resource e-mail lists to keep in touch with timely Relative Care information.
Generations United www.gu.org works collaboratively with other national organizations and reports in several ways: the weekly newsletter is designed for brief tags with links to full articles. GU also publishes a national magazine, Together, which covers international generational issues as well. The staff is actively involved in current legislation and presentation to groups on issues affecting kinship care. Check out the site and consider joining for extra benefits.
Child Welfare League of America www.cwla.org extended its ability to educate the public on issues of child welfare including relative care with the unique blog talk radio show, On the Line with CWLA, go to www.blogtalkradio.com/CWLA-Radio. The call-in number is 347/326-9411.Child welfare workers, many who are members of CWLA, know the good work of this organization. However, CWLA is also a treasure to anyone interested in the welfare of children in our country.
Though we have relied on these two resources for timely information especially because they collaborate with other resouces, we also hope that you will explore other websites and select some that can be of particular interest to your work or needs.
Following is just a sample of a few sites you may want to explore:
www.aarp.org Study the site for grandparent issues especially the Direct Links.
www.aecf.org Anne E. Casey Foundation – Excellent research on related issues to kinship care, plus grant support
www.brookdalefountation.orgCheck regularly for kinship support
www.childrensdefense.orgA prime lobbying and research organization for children
www.grandfamiliesofamerica.orgExcellent by and for grandfamilies site with online newsletter and lots of links
www.abanet.orgAmerican Bar Association, explore the site for kinship care issues especially the Kinship Care Legal Resource Center
www.grandfamilies.orgis the wonderful collaborative site for updates on the issues
www.clasp.orgCenter for Law and Social Policy offers good analysis of research and readable articles
There are many more, but we do get overwhelmed. Please make note of these and others for future reference.
Some quick notes here:
GRAND Magazine has a new online magazine site and it is terrific. Sometimes we just want to browse a magazine, page by page – this very interesting site allows just that – click to turn the pages of GRAND, give it a try: www.grandmagazine.com Then click the sample magazine link on the right top.
Amy Goyer who served the AARP Grandparents Information Center for several years is now at www.grandparents.org
Watch the uninsured babies clock at www.childrensdefense.orgwe are now over 1,600,000 babies born uninsured since this congress took office. Yikes!
A joyous holiday to you all!
Love, Helene
