MICHIGAN — September is Kinship Foster Caregiver Month, recognizing the efforts of family members who open their homes to children while the state or local authorities sort out custody issues.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says their first choice is someone related to the child— called a kinship caregiver.
MDHHS holds that children in need of placement do better when placed with a relative.
"Maintaining connections with relatives, friends, and communities they know and love is vital to their physical and emotional well-being,” said Demetrius Starling, executive director of the MDHHS Children’s Services Agency. "I want to thank all the kinship families in Michigan who have stepped up to care for their relatives, family friends or fellow tribal members. The difference you make in the lives of the children you care for is immeasurable.”
Approximately 53,000 children in Michigan are being raised by kinship caregivers— including 4,100 kids in foster care and 49,000 being raised in kinship families.
For resources becoming— or continuing to be— a kinship caregiver, call 1-8000-535-1218 or click here.
