Please join us on Wednesday, June 24, from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM for a community conversation focused on kinship families and the unique challenges faced by children who have lost a parent to substance-related causes and are being raised by other family members. You can register for this free event here.

Kerry Bickford, from Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, will join us to share insights into the experiences of caregivers supporting children impacted by parental loss due to substance use. Kerry will discuss the organization’s work, the current landscape facing kinship families, and available resources and supports. This session is designed for direct service providers, community partners, and others interested in learning more about the needs of kinship families.

Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and engage in discussion about strategies, resources, and ways to better support these children and caregivers.

About our presenter: Kerry is a founding member of the Commission on the Status of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in MA and a grandparent peer grief specialist for SADOD. She is a certified grief educator and has helped develop grief resources for grandparents raising grandchildren with the National Alliance on Children’s Grief. Kerry facilitates three grief support groups monthly for grieving grandparents/kin, and two for parents who have lost a loved one to a substance-related cause.

This is part of the CONNECT 2026 Education & Training Services. For more information, please contact Nicole St. Hilaire, CONNECT Outreach Manager at nicole@opioidtaskforce.org.