I was just thinking about why I have written several posts about Meth and the effect it has had and is having on the child welfare system, and how devastating it is to families. A few weeks ago, I saw one of my former Boys and Girls Club kids. I didn’t get a chance to talk to her, since she and her grandmother were on their way to Phoenix. But I remembered her, and how not too long ago, the story of how she and her family were affected by Meth was in the local paper.

It was a very upsetting story, since she and her brother were such sweet and wonderful kids when I worked with them in the after school program a few years ago. I’m sure they are still sweet and wonderful, but they have been exposed to way too much loss in their young lives. They lost both their mom and dad to meth. The dad died first, and the mom followed within the year.

The story in the paper recounted how the kids were told to stay occupied in the living room while their parents had people over all the time, and they did things behind closed doors, but in the house and within earshot of the kids. Obviously, the children were unaware of exactly what effect it was having on their parents. They were the ones who found mom dead on the couch.

Now, they are being taken care of by relatives, but I think about what might have happened had they been put into the care of the local CPS. I also wonder about how long a grandparent will be able to take care of them, and after that what happens? I think it is an amazing thing that there are grandparents that are willing to care for their grandkids, but I worry about the ages and health of these caring adults.

I got an email today from the Pew Commission about a meeting on April 25th, 2006 in Washington, D.C., about this very subject. Generations United is hosting a briefing on how to better support grandparent caregivers. If anyone is able to attend, the time is 9:30a.m. - 10:30a.m., U.S. Capitol, Room SC-4, Washington, D.C. 20510.

To attend, please RSVP: Space is limited. Please contact Roxana Martinez at 202-289-3979 or rmartinez@gu.org. FOR PRESS QUESTIONS Contact Gina Russo 202-421-3578 (phone) or mediaiq@comcast.net.