To the editor:

I’m writing in regards to Karen Nelson’s letter regarding kinship caregivers (“On kinship caregivers,” Aug. 1). I first want to agree with her comment “that the government doesn’t assist with housing to accommodate the struggles of having to upsize your home.” I was in this position when my grandchildren were placed in my care. I had to become a foster parent. In so doing, I had to remodel my home to add a third bedroom and update my smoke and CO alarms to current standards. This ended up costing me, out of pocket, over $6,000. When I asked for reimbursement from the county, I was told that wasn’t an expense they would pay for. They would see if they could find some money from other programs that could help with that expense. No money ever came. I felt it was an investment in my grandchildren, so I let it go.

I received a monthly stipend for each child and endured the Social Services nightmare for 16 months. As a foster parent, you are told there is an 18-month window where you either adopt the children or they have to go back into foster care, if they can’t be returned to their parents. In my case, the Family Court would not return the children to their parents. I learned of the kinship guardian program. If I was approved, the children would remain in my care and they would not have to be adopted or be placed back into foster care. After months of paperwork, court dates and constant hassles from Social Services, I was awarded legal guardianship of my grandchildren through the kinship guardian program. The court costs were all paid for by the county, so no added expense to me.

Mrs. Nelson commented, “kinship caregivers receive a fraction of the assistance that foster caregivers receive.” I have not found that to be true. I continue to receive the same monthly stipend for the children. The only thing I lost in the process was a few hundred dollars a year for clothing.

I have also found that there are programs for peer support and respite care. The Child Care Coordinating Council of the North Country is available for kinship or foster care families. I have not used this program but it is available to anyone who might need it.

The foster care system is broken in this country. There needs to be a complete overhaul of the system and truly put the needs of the children first. That is not happening right now. Too much politics and personal agendas have ruined the program. I wouldn’t wish this nightmare on anyone. I agree with Mrs. Nelson — “the need for change is immediate.”

James P. Moody

Tupper Lake