Anne Arundel Foster Grandparent Program Stays Strong

Patricia Garrett of Glen Burnie has been a foster grandparent in Anne Arundel County for more than five years. She enjoys volunteering to read with students  at Van Bokkelen Elementary School in Severn.  

"It makes me feel great to know that I've helped them to break some barriers—going from not being able to read to reading," she said.

Anne Arundel County's Foster Grandparent Program matches older adults with young children in a mentoring program that provides benefits to both.

"The great work foster grandparent volunteers are conducting contribute to the health and vitality of their communities," said Kristin Plumer, director of the program for Anne Arundel County's Department of Aging and Disabilities. 

Plumer added that the volunteers often tutor at-risk students, provide help to special education children, provide literacy support, or respond to children's social and emotional needs.

Click here for more information on volunteering to be a foster grandparent in Anne Arundel County.

The idea for the program has been around since the 1960s, according to Plumer who said it started as an intiative on the "War on Poverty" in 1965. The War on Poverty was introduced by President Lyndon B. Johnson and part of a larger initiative called the Great Society, domestic programs aimed at creating social reforms in the United States.

Mentoring is done through the Boys & Girls Club, schools (Head Start, public education and special education), social services and family support programs, said Plumer. 

Since it is a federally funded program, there are requirements for the volunteer foster grandparents and the young children they mentor. The volunteer adults cannot have an annual income exceeding $22,980.

"I recruit older adults, age 55 and older, who are income-eligible to mentor children with exceptional needs," Plumer said.

As for the children and what "exceptional needs" are, Plumer said it can vary—from something as simple as wearing eyeglasses, to behavioral issues or those who might have a parent in prison. Sometimes, it can just be a child who needs more attention.

"Whatever a teacher might feel a child is lacking in a certain area and needs a little more guidance," she said.

Plumer said the program is successful because of the hard work of its volunteers—about 54 foster grandparents throughout Anne Arundel County. In 2012, this amounted to a reported 51,749 volunteer hours. She said that a benefit for the volunteers is that it "allows older Americans to remain active and healthy." 

For Garrett, there are rewards to being a foster grandparent volunteer who helps children read: She said she loves watching it all play out. 

"There's just a breakthrough and then there it is," she said of helping children read. "It makes them so proud of themselves."

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