"If we fail to dare, if we do not try, the next generation will harvest the fruit of our indifference; a world we did not want - a world we did not choose - but a world we could have made better, by caring more for the results of our labors.” -Robert F. Kennedy

Grandparents raising their grandchildren was nothing new to Tony and me. We knew it was occurring more frequently, and we had actually incorporated the phenomena in a documentary a number of years ago. At the time we interviewed an impressive woman named Cassie Dawson.

Cassie was raising her three young granddaughters in Wilkes-Barre. It was a heartwarming story about a true heroine who sacrificed to make sure her grandchildren had a good home.

Dr. Don Farmer believed it was the best story Tony had produced to that point, and that was high praise indeed from a former teacher and unquestionably the best college administrator we have ever known.

One of the rituals in our house will come as no surprise to anyone. Tony and I enjoy watching Windsor Park Stories, and then waiting for the reactions from those who call and e-mail us.

Easter Sunday was no exception, but we did not expect very much feedback. Then the phone started ringing.

One of the calls took us by surprise. It came from a woman who proudly announced that she is a regular viewer of the series and she had a suggestion about an event she was involved in.

An exchange of e-mails and we were part of the committee working on a conference that would explore all aspects of grandparents as caregivers.

We saw it as an excellent opportunity, and a concept that was tailor made for Windsor Park Stories

Ruth Kemmerer is the Director, Resource Development & Volunteer Services, Family Service Association of Wyoming Valley. She along with other public servants and legislators is trying to get the badly needed help for these men and women who are now raising their grandchildren.

She invited us to a planning conference where it became very clear that there is a crisis in these newly formed family units.

The numbers are breathtaking: six million children in this country are being raised by grandparents, 160 thousand of them in Pennsylvania alone.

In Luzerne County nearly half the grandparents are taking care of their children’s children. 16.2% of these grandparents are living in poverty.

More than 80,000 grandparents are responsible for meeting the basic needs of the children in their care.

Every year the number increases.

On Wednesday, April 11, we packed our gear and drove to the Luzerne County Office of Human Services in Wikes-Barre.

Would you believe, we found a parking place right in front of the building?

It was as if luck was on our shoulder.

At the entrance to the building, we met a welcoming, executive type who literally took us by the hand and enabled us to pass the security guard without incident.

At the end of our elevator ride, we formally made the acquaintance of Joe Clapps, the Coordinator of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Intergenerational Coalition.

He obliged us with a short interview about the committee meeting and the April 27th conference.

No sooner did we finish our interview with Clapps, when the door at the far end of the conference room opened and in walked Ruth Kemmerer, the person who made the Easter Sunday contact.

An exchange of pleasantries and it was back to work

Tony was busy shooting the meeting where representatives of local agencies and state Senator Raphael Musto discussed the all day event, who and what it would include and the participants.

Musto is using his good offices to introduce legislation that will help the caregivers with training, counseling, services and money to improve their situations.

Everything from logistics to the state legislators panel and the multimedia equipment was discussed.

Then it happened. Eleanor Glover, a grandmother raising two grandchildren, entered the conference room.

She is a tall woman and the etchings of a life of struggle give her face a magnetic aura.

She is a woman one is drawn to. She is a woman of presence…a woman who encapsulates the story of grandparents raising grandchildren.

A member of the planning team, Eleanor Glover puts a human face on the stresses of the caregiver. For example, she says that frequently it’s a choice between paying a bill or putting food on the table.

This is what many grandparents struggle with everyday when they are trying to support themselves and their grandchildren without any additional financial help.

Senator Musto is hopeful his legislation will remedy this problem.

Another high point in the meeting came when Ruth Kemmerer explained that this conference is designed to put the human back in human services.

From what we experienced she was absolutely on target. The people we met on that chilly April morning were among the most impressive we have ever met. Thoughtful, caring, competent, friendly and willing to do what had to be done in order to make this conference on grandparents raising grandchildren a success.

There is great interest in the conference which will be held at the Genetti Best Western from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 27, 2007. For more information contact:

Joseph Clapps, Intergenerational Coordinator