Nebraska Children's Home Society Kinship Support

If you are a grandparent or relative raising a child in Nebraska and you have heard of the kinship navigator program through Lutheran Family Services, you may not realize there is a second statewide organization doing similar work. The Nebraska Children's Home Society — commonly called NCHS — provides kinship caregiver support services alongside LFS, and they serve families throughout the state.

What NCHS Offers Kinship Caregivers

NCHS operates as a supportive navigator, not a government agency. They cannot approve state benefits or change your grant amount. What they can do:

• Resource identification. NCHS staff help you figure out which programs you qualify for and which agency handles each one. This includes ADC child-only cash grants, Medicaid, SNAP, and Child Care Subsidies through Nebraska DHHS.
• Support groups. NCHS runs peer support groups where kinship caregivers can connect with others going through the same experience. These groups provide emotional support and practical tips from people who have navigated the same application processes.
• Referrals. If you need legal help with guardianship, NCHS can connect you to Legal Aid of Nebraska or the Volunteer Lawyers Project. If you need emergency financial help, they can point you toward community resources.
• Emergency flexible funds. Like LFS, NCHS can sometimes access limited emergency funding for immediate household needs — beds, clothing, or utility arrearages — when a child first arrives in your home.

How to Contact NCHS

Toll-free kinship line: 1-888-315-7347

Call this number to start an intake. NCHS serves all Nebraska counties. There is no income requirement or court order needed to access their navigation services — informal caregivers qualify.

NCHS vs. Lutheran Family Services

Both organizations serve kinship families statewide and are funded through Nebraska DHHS. The key difference is operational focus:

• LFS Kinship Navigator Program (833-572-2053) has a dedicated kinship-specific warmline and email intake ([email protected]). Their kinship navigation program is one of the most established in the state.
• NCHS provides kinship support as part of a broader children's services mission that includes adoption, foster care, and family preservation.

You do not have to choose one or the other. Some caregivers contact both organizations to compare available resources, especially when local programming varies by region.

What Neither Organization Can Do

Neither NCHS nor LFS can approve or deny your state benefits. Only DHHS caseworkers have that authority. Both organizations provide verbal guidance and referrals, not a structured physical filing system for tracking your applications and renewals.

If you want a printable preparation tool that organizes state rules, document checklists, and redetermination tracking in one place, our Nebraska Financial Help Guide fills that gap — so you can walk into your NCHS or LFS consultation already knowing which programs to ask about and which documents to bring.

See more Nebraska guides →