BONSHAW, P.E.I. — Don Avery of Bonshaw believes many residents of P.E.I. caring for their grandchildren need better assistance to fulfil the demanding role.
In 2016, Avery and his wife, Catherine, lovingly took on the task of looking after their great-granddaughter, who is now in the care of her father.
The responsibility, he says, was accepted without hesitation, but came with a financial, physical and emotional price.
The couple turned to a support group in Charlottetown to help themselves – and others – find ways to best care for their grandchildren. More than 200 children on P.E.I. are being raised by their grandparents.
Avery has gone a step further than simply taking part in a support group. He has founded Building GRAND-Families Inc., which was incorporated on Tuesday as a non-profit organization.
He says the group will advocate for grandparents to be more ably equipped to care for their grandchildren.
Avery appreciates the province establishing the P.E.I. Grandparents and Care Providers Program, but feels it falls short.
Under the program, grandparents, or other caregivers, receive $700 per month per child from the province to assist with daily living costs, clothing and transportation. They also receive child care, dental and drug coverage for the children.
Avery estimates he and his wife spent close to $30,000 caring for their great-granddaughter in just one year.
He says “two great partners’’ are working with him to help inform the public in the plight of many grandparents left caring for their grandchildren. The partners are Christina Murray, acting dean of the faculty of nursing at UPEI, and the Vanier Institute of the Family in Ottawa.
In a recent news release, the Vanier Institute called the National Grandparents Day, which was Sunday, a time to recognize and celebrate the significant contributions grandparents and great-grandparents make to family life and family well-being across Canada.
“In many families, they are highly involved in the lives of their younger generations, whether it’s through some degree of co-parenting responsibility with the parent(s) or in leading a grand-family with no parental involvement,’’ says the Vanier Institute.
“Families adapt and transition to grand-families for diverse reasons, including mental illness and/or addictions; the absence, incarceration or death of a parent(s); or to provide support in the event of adolescent pregnancy. Choice, culture and circumstance can also play a role.’’
The Vanier Institute of the Family recently engaged with grandparents and great-grandparents living in Prince Edward Island to increase understanding of grand-families in the province.
While findings will be released in the fall, respondents have reported being satisfied with their lives, and most say they are aware of the P.E.I. Grandparents and Care Providers program.
The survey is part of the Grand-Families in Canada Partnership between the Vanier Institute, UPEI and Building GRAND-Families Inc.
The Vanier Institute says the two-year collaboration aims to engage with a network of individuals and groups to bring together those who serve families, researchers, community organizations and the general public to increase the understanding of family well-being in P.E.I. and across Canada.
