Grandparents Raising Grandkids Find a Home in Boston

BOSTON — The parents are dead, on drugs, in jail, just gone--nobody knows where. And grandma is left to rear her grandchildren.

With the number of such families skyrocketing nationally, Boston is constructing what’s billed as the nation’s first public housing for grandparents rearing their grandchildren.

“Grandfamilies House,” a complex of 26 apartments, will be handicapped accessible for the elders and toddler-proof for the youngsters. Developers say it will offer a network of support for families struggling with some very different generational needs.

“I think this is a miracle,” said Elizabeth Hicks, 58, who is rearing her three grandchildren--two by her son, one by her daughter.

Her 12-year-old granddaughter, Asia Harris, has lived with her since she was 3 days old.

“Her mother said, ‘Will you baby-sit a couple hours?’ I’ve had her since,” Hicks said at the recent groundbreaking ceremony.

Hicks said she is glad this special home will be available if she needs it. Hicks, whose vision and kidneys have been impaired from diabetes, said Asia often worries about her health.

“She tells me, ‘Oh, grandmother, please don’t die,’ ” Hicks said. “Please don’t let anything happen to you.”

An estimated 1.5 million American children are being raised by their grandparents, from the inner cities to rural farm towns. That’s up from about 1 million children in 1990.

The American Assn. of Retired Persons said an additional 2.5 million children live in a grandparent-headed household that also has a parent living with them. The parent is virtually absent in many cases, AARP said.

About 400 support groups offer advice to grandparents rearing their children’s children, although experts say Boston’s housing development is unique.

Government and private dollars are contributing to the $4-million housing complex, which is being built on the site of an abandoned nursing home in an inner-city Boston neighborhood.

For the seniors, there will be elevators, ramps and grab bars in the apartments, which are scheduled to open in a year. For the children, there will be safety electrical outlets, window guards and storage areas for toxic household products.

Large bay windows will let grandparents keep watchful eyes on their youngsters playing in the park out back. Programs run by the YMCA will teach everything from computers to aerobics--to both age groups.

Residents will pay rents equal to 30% of their family income--in some cases, that could be as much as $375 a month. Of 50 child-rearing grandparents interviewed for a recent Boston study, all had incomes below $15,000 a year.

Money isn’t the only problem. Some seniors find their apartments won’t allow young children. Others can’t get food stamps or adequate medical care for the children.

Renee Woodworth, coordinator for the AARP’s Grandparent Information Center, said most grandparents with live-in grandchildren are married and care for one or two children, on average.

“All you have to be is a grandparent and have a child that needs you and you could find yourself in this situation,” Woodworth said.

Fourteen-year-old Alexas Rabb--Hicks’ other granddaughter and Asia’s first-cousin--knows her grandmother loves her, but says facilities like Grandfamilies House will help children like her know they are not alone.

“It’s not easy being a kid these days,” Alexas said.