OKLAHOMA CAPITOL -- More than 42,000 Oklahoma grandparents are raising children again – their grandchildren.

“We give care because we do care,” said Maxine Thomas, a grandmother raising grandchildren and taking care of her husband who has had four strokes.

She said her grandchildren help her when her rheumatoid arthritis makes it hard for her to do simple activities. “They are a blessing…they are my arms and my legs.”

Grandparents face circumstances that may present new challenges since they raised their own children. More than a third of the grandchildren have some type of disability and about a third of the grandparent-headed households are at or below the poverty level, according to Oklahoma Department of Human Services statistics.

Many grandparents are raising grandchildren because Oklahoma has the highest rate of incarcerating women and the high rates of substance abuse, said OKDHS Aging Services Division Director Lance Robertson.

OKDHS provides information for parents and families and guidance about coping with family and personal stresses.

The information and two conferences each year include discussions about risky behaviors, caregiver support and parenting and specialized information about guardianship legal issues and child custody.

For more information about grandparents raising grandchildren, please contact the Aging Services Division of OKDHS at (405) 521-2086.

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