Carter County Schools Launches Support Group for Guardians

Carter County Schools has introduced a monthly support group called **Grands and Guardians** to assist grandparents and guardians raising children. This initiative recognizes the unique challenges faced by older caregivers and provides a platform for emotional support and connection.

The **Grands and Guardians** support group convenes once a month at four rotating schools: **Hunter Elementary**, **Happy Valley Elementary**, **Cloudland Elementary**, and **Hampton Elementary**. Jenny Jones, the **Coordinated School Health/Family Resource Center coordinator**, emphasizes the importance of creating a sense of community among participants. “Honestly, I just wanted to provide these families with a space where they can come in and feel like they’re with others that are within the same situation, facing the same challenges, or at least similar challenges,” Jones stated.

Emotional support plays a vital role in the meetings, with participants often sharing tears and experiences. Jones remarked, “We cry together. I don’t think that I went to one single meeting where we didn’t cry together. It’s great to just offer that emotional support and maybe offer some coping skills for these families because they didn’t plan on raising kids in their 70s.”

In addition to emotional assistance, the group aims to connect families with resources available within the school system. **Carter County student support coordinators** facilitate communication between families and schools, often attending the meetings to provide further support.

The **Grands and Guardians** group collaborates with the **Elizabethton Senior Center** and the **Carter County Drug Prevention Coalition** to enhance its outreach. Brittany Shell, executive director of the **Elizabethton Senior Center**, and Nash Acuna, executive director of the **Carter County Drug Prevention Coalition**, frequently attend meetings to offer their expertise.

The schedule for the **Grands and Guardians** meetings for the remainder of the school year is as follows:

– **January 20** – Happy Valley Community @ Happy Valley Elementary
– **January 27** – Roan Mountain Community @ Cloudland Elementary
– **February 3** – Hampton Community @ Hampton Elementary
– **March 10** – Stoney Creek Community @ Hunter Elementary
– **March 17** – Happy Valley Community @ Happy Valley Elementary
– **March 24** – Roan Mountain Community @ Cloudland Elementary
– **April 7** – Hampton Community @ Hampton Elementary

All meetings take place from **15:30 to 16:30**. For more information, interested individuals can visit the **Carter County Schools’ Coordinated School Health** Facebook page.

Through this initiative, Carter County Schools aims to strengthen community ties and provide much-needed support to families navigating the challenges of raising children later in life.