For Noel*, Grandma Dee has always been there – for birthdays and holidays or when Noel’s mom faced tough times. Dee is actually Noel’s great aunt, but the now 11-year-old Noel prefers to call her grandma – the warm and loving figure who always makes her feel special.
As we celebrate our 25th anniversary, we're sharing stories of the many children and families we’ve met over the years – families like Grandma Dee and Noel who we worked with in 2014.
Children's Law Center helped Grandma Dee care for, and later adopt, her grandniece. Noel and her mom had lived with several relatives over the years, but when Noel’s mom couldn’t care for her anymore, the young girl was placed in foster care.
Thankfully, Grandma Dee found Children’s Law Center. We helped her become a licensed foster parent so Noel could move in with her, but Grandma Dee and Noel had to return frequently to court and get permission for routine parenting decisions, like medical care, while the court and DC’s child welfare agency assessed the best permanent placement for Noel.
“Since we had to go back and forth to court so many times…I didn’t want Noel to live like that,” Grandma Dee shared. That’s when she decided to adopt Noel.
Relatives like Grandma Dee step in every day to care for children living in or at risk of entering foster care. It’s one of many reasons we successfully advocated for the Close Relative Caregiver Subsidy Act which provides much-needed financial support for low-income relatives who serve as caregivers in a child's life. The funding for this law went into effect just months before the pandemic hit – a lifeline for many during these challenging times.
Despite her bumpy early years, Noel’s future is bright. “I’m looking forward to my niece growing up and blossoming into an independent, self-sufficient woman,” Dee said.
Celebrate a Great Aunt, Great Uncle or Grandparent in Your Life!
Grandparents Day is on September 12! Send a card to a grandparent or other relative in your life – and know that your gift will help us support and honor the many grandparents and relatives we work with each day.
