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AGENCY: Foster
Grandparent Program of St. Clair County
St. Clair County Council on Aging, Inc.
ADDRESS: 600 Grand River
Port Huron, MI 48060
TELEPHONE: (810) 987-8813
OFFICE HOURS: 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday
DIRECTOR: Laura J. Nestle
FEES: None
ELIGIBILITY: For Foster Grandparents: 60 Years of age or over, desire to work
with children, commitment to serve 20 hours per week, monthly income within
annual guidelines. Children are referred through their classroom instructors.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE: CALL FIRST for an application / interview. Call the
Foster Grandparent Program at: 987-8813, or contact the Council on Aging
CAN HELP BE IMMEDIATE: No. Application / screening takes approximately two
weeks
SUPPORTED BY: State, Federal Funding; Commission on Aging; Department of Mental
Health; St. Clair County Council on Aging.
PROGRAM/SERVICES DESCRIPTION: The Foster Grandparent Program provides meaningful
activity for low-income persons 60 years of age and over. Volunteers receive
40 hours of initial training and then are placed in a host site where they
work one-on-one with identified at-risk children. Site placement may be a
local school or Head Start Program, hospital, or other health and mental
health settings. Volunteers serve by mentoring, nurturing, guiding, and teaching
children, through a variety of activities from rocking babies to teaching
children to get along with others, drying tears, listening and maybe even
helping them learn to read or do math. In return for their services, volunteers
receive a tax-exempt stipend that is not considered income for eligibility
for other benefit programs, such as rend subsidy or food stamps. Foster Grandparents
work 20 hours a week in a supervised setting. Transportation and a daily
meal are provided, in addition to an annual physical and excess volunteer
accident insurance. Continuous training through monthly in-services and an
opportunity to participate in a statewide conference every two years.
Recognition and social events are also an important benefit of the program.
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