The Kinship Center @ Central Area Senior Center

Are You . . .

• A grandparent raising grandchildren?
• An aunt or uncle raising nieces and nephews?
• Raising a relative child under 18?
• A sibling raising a brother or sister?
• A cousin raising your cousin’s children?
• An adoptive family or about to become one?
• Raising children of a family member in jail or prison?
• Raising a child under 18 not born to you?

If you answered YES, then we are here to help! Call or drop-in!

Information and Referral

information, education, and resource referrals for grandparents, relatives, kin, foster care providers, and adoptive families.

Support Groups

for grandparents and relatives caring for children and teens, as well as pre-adopt or adoptive parents.
Case Management- to help families organize the services you need to care for children.

Advocacy

for caregivers and children in schools, court systems, health care and mental health agencies, benefits programs, Child Protective Services, etc.

Adoption, Re-unification or Guardianship Training

for families wishing to become guardians or adoptive parents.

Youth activities

including drill team and drum squad for 4 to 18 years old, a support group and academic tutoring.
Outings, Parties and Celebrations- for Kinship Center families.

Parenting Class Referrals

for grandparents and others who are “becoming parents again”.

Workshops

(contact us for the monthly schedule)

• Legal Options
• Educational Advocacy
• TANF
• Debt and Money Management
• Nutrition

February Events

Black History Luncheon
Feb 23rd, 12:00 to 1:30pm.
Menu: Fried Chicken, Yams, Greens, Corn Bread, Peach Cobbler, Ice Cream.
Entertainment: Play about Harriet Tubman
Please RSVP to: kimberlw@seniorservices.org 445.1360 ext 253

Who Are We?

Mission:
The Kinship Center is collaboration designed to provide kinship caregivers connection to resources, support, educational advocacy and legal options.

The Kinship Center is the first of its kind in Washington State, providing services exclusively to kinship families. A kinship family is often a grandparent raising grandchildren or another adult family member raising a relative’s child under the age of 18. The mission of the Kinship Center is to create and maintain a collaborative resource center that provides comprehensive and coordinated services to kinship caregivers: educational advocacy, legal options, community education, general support and group activities.

In Washington State, over 40,000 grandparents are caring for their grandchildren. Nearly eight percent of Washington’s children live with their grandparents or relatives who become their primary caregivers (U.S. Census, 2010). The visionaries for the program is the King County Kinship Collaboration whose mission is to create and maintain a regional collaboration that provides comprehensive and coordinated services, advocacy and community education to support kinship families. The Kinship Center was created in response to the needs of Kinship Caregivers who are grandparents, aunts, uncles and siblings caring for young family members. The Kinship Center's primary funding is from Casey Family Programs, whose mission is to provide, improve and ultimately prevent the need for foster care.

The Kinship Center is housed in the Central Area Senior Center (CASC), a neighborhood activity center whose Director is Cynthia Andrews. CASC addresses the social, educational, and health needs of older adults and the community at large. Activities include exercise programs, computer classes, guitar lessons, card clubs, dance classes, language classes, recreational trips and much more.