Kinship Care Story: Joyce

Joyce recently stepped up to care for her two great-nieces, ages eight and four, due to their mother’s struggles with substance use disorder and mental health issues. To make sure her home was safety-compliant and ready for two young children to move in, Joyce needed to upgrade her door locks and purchase some additional items. Step Up Parents provided Joyce with a Walmart gift card to help her purchase some of the items she needed to provide a safe, stable, nurturing environment for the girls.

“I suddenly became the caregiver of two children," says Joyce. "I am 16 years clean and have battled my own journeys. It feels good to be able to be a safe place for the kids, but it has been difficult as well. Between the stress and physical and financial needs, it has been a lot and really sudden. The gift card Step Up Parents provided helped me get my home safe and ready for the kids. I was able to purchase cleaning products, sippy cups, and child utensils, as well as a child safety lock for my door and a storage container for both the girls’ clothes. The program’s generosity came at a time when I really needed it. Thank you so much for your kindness and help."

Joyce's caseworker, Destiny Klein, a Parent Partner at Seacoast Strength to Succeed, shared this message about her experience working with Step Up Parents to help Joyce: “I wanted to commend the program for its ease, access, and quick turnaround. As a worker, it is oftentimes very difficult to obtain resources and your staff made it so easy and pleasant. It was such a good feeling to be able to help the family after so many tough obstacles. Thank you."