Grandparent and Kinship Support Groups in Kentucky

Raising a grandchild or relative's child is isolating in a way that is hard to explain to someone who has not done it. Your friends are traveling in retirement. Your adult child — the parent — may be the reason the child is in your home, and talking about that with family feels impossible. Support groups exist specifically for this, and Kentucky has more options than most states.

KY-KINS Peer Support Program

The KY-KINS program is run by CHFS and the University of Kentucky specifically for kinship caregivers. It matches you one-on-one with a peer supporter — someone who has at least 18 months of personal kinship caregiving experience and understands the emotional and administrative reality.

Nine regional navigators cover all CHFS service regions across the state. The program is virtual, so geography does not limit your access. Your peer supporter helps with emotional support, navigating DCBS, finding community resources, and simply being someone who gets it.

To connect: contact the Kentucky Kinship Resource Center (KKRC) at [email protected], text KINSHIP to 31996, or call the Kinship Support Hotline at 877-565-5608. They will match you with a navigator in your region.

Cooperative Extension Kinship Programs

The University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service operates in every Kentucky county, and several county offices run programming specifically for kinship and grandparent caregivers:

• "Parenting and Caregiving Over 50" workshops — developed in partnership with Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky, these cover practical topics from managing school enrollment to accessing financial help
• Resource distribution events — Cooperative Extension offices in at least 10 Kentucky counties host caregiver resource fairs where you can pick up printed benefit guides, meet local service providers, and connect with other kinship families

Contact your county Cooperative Extension office to ask what kinship programming is available locally. Availability varies by county and changes with annual grant funding.

Area Agency on Aging Support Groups

The 15 Area Agencies on Aging and Independent Living (AAIL) across Kentucky run the Family Caregiver Program under Title III-E of the Older Americans Act. As part of that program, many AAILs organize caregiver support groups — some in person, some by phone or video — specifically for grandparents and older relatives raising children.

These groups are free. Contact the AAIL for your county and ask about kinship caregiver group meetings. Availability depends on the region and the current funding cycle.

What Support Groups Offer That Agencies Cannot

DCBS processes your application. Legal aid files your petition. The KKRC navigator helps you find the right office. A support group does something none of those can: it puts you in a room (or on a call) with people who are living the same experience.

The conversations tend to be practical — who found a dentist that takes KCHIP, how someone handled a school that refused the caregiver affidavit, what to expect at a DCBS fair hearing — alongside the harder conversations about grief, family conflict, and exhaustion.

If isolation is wearing you down, a group is not a luxury. It is maintenance.

For a complete overview of every financial benefit and support service available to Kentucky kinship caregivers, see the Financial Help for Grandparents and Relatives Raising a Child in Kentucky guide.

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