Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
By Gloria Bailen
Tango Pix

"I didn't envision doing it alone, but I love my kids, and these girls are just as much my kids as if I bore them." Kay Davis, grandparent

"I'm 58 and going through menopause, and she's 14 and going through puberty. It's not a very good combination, I'm telling you." Donna Reske, grandparent

It was supposed to be their golden years, a time to relax and spoil the grandchildren. Yet for nearly four million grandparents all across America a new reality is taking shape: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren tells the stories of three grandparents who have taken on sole responsibility for raising their children's children.

This hard-hitting investigation exposes some of the difficulties surrounding this growing phenomenon. Mostly older, single women, the grandparents are usually ineligible for the financial supports available to foster families, yet they may face issues that are enormously complex emotionally as well as financially. It has been estimated that the grandparents are themselves twice as likely as average to suffer from clinical depression.

The film also profiles community programs which offer housing, counseling and financial services to grandparents, including Grandfamilies House, a pioneering inter-generational housing development in Boston which offers not only a place to live, but the support of others facing the same issues.

22 minutes
© 2000
Purchase $179 DVD
Order No. QA-292

Awards & Conference Screenings
National Council on Family Relations
American Society on Aging

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To rent or purchase this film, please visit the Icarus Films website

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