“Caregivers” are anyone with primary responsibility for supporting and raising children. This could be parents, foster parents, or other family members. 

“Respite” is an opportunity to take a break from caregiving. Time away creates space for taking care of yourself or other members of the family.

“Respite Care” is support provided to you, to allow you to take a break.

Caregivers apply to join the network. We will match families to one another based on:

• The child’s medical and support needs
• Where families live
• Language and cultural identities and preferences

Staff provide initial and ongoing support to anyone involved in providing and receiving respite. CORI and SORI background checks will also be performed. A virtual learning platform will enable caregivers to participate in trainings, discussion forums and other learning opportunities. Once caregivers have been matched to one another, check-ins will be provided at least monthly.

C2C Respite Network is a resource for families whose children (age 0-26) need specialized support. A few examples of the reasons are listed below: 

• ADHD
• Autism 
• Blind or vision impaired
• Cerebral Palsy
• Complex medical concerns
• Deaf or Hard of Hearing
• Developmental Disabilities
• Down Syndrome
• Diabetes
• Emotional needs
• Epilepsy / Seizure Disorder
• Intellectual Disabilities
• Learning disabilities
• Mental Health concerns
• Neurodiversity
• Physical disabilities
• Rare genetic disorders
• Traumatic Brain Injury

 

There are many more reasons a family might want to join our network. If you are looking for respite care and interested in joining, please reach out!

We believe that it will be a powerful solution for families because:

• It was proposed by a caregiver with lived experience.
• It draws on caregiver capacity to help fill the gaps in the respite provider crisis.
• It offers solutions to families whose children might not qualify for professional respite care (for example, children birth-3 years old).
• It is culturally and linguistically affirming.
• It is available to all families, regardless of language or financial resources. Families do not need to live near a community-based agency in order to participate.
• It helps families build their circle of support.

Click on the buttons at the top of this page to get involved. You can sign up to receive our updates or join our network by signing up to be matched with another parent or caregiver!

Q: Will the CORI background check affect my immigration status？ 

A: The CORI background check will not affect or get in the way of your immigration status. It is done just to see if a participant has any past criminal records or not! 

 

Q: Is the CORI background check confidential?   

A: The CORI background check is completely confidential and is not shared with anyone. It is done for each program participant.  

 

Q: Is the PCA Program available as a compensation option?  

A: The Personal Care Attendant program is available to people with disabilities who meet the following conditions: 

• Have MassHealth Standard or CommonHealth or be enrolled with a Senior Care Option or 1Care Plan. 
• Physical assistance must be medically necessary. 
• Have a permanent or chronic disability that impairs their ability to perform activities of daily living without physical assistance. 
• Needs physical assistance with two or more activities of daily living. 

The other forms of compensation are Barter and Private pay. 

 

Q: Do I have to be a Massachusetts resident to be eligible for this program?  

A: This program currently focuses only on residents of Massachusetts.  

 

Q: How can I learn more about the program before signing up?  

A: We are always happy to share more information and answer any questions you might have! Please contact us at c2crespite@fcsn.org or you can reach out to any of our team coordinators. 

 

Q: Can I still participate in the program if I only want to receive respite?  

A: Reciprocity is the key to success of this program, but you can still participate if you only want to provide/receive or do both as well.