Caregiver to Caregiver Respite Network
A community of caregiving rooted in shared experience
Families of children with disabilities and specialized support needs are warmly invited to join the Caregiver to Caregiver Respite Network (C2C) to give and receive respite.
- “Caregivers” are anyone with primary responsibility for supporting and raising children. This could be parents, foster parents, or other family members.
- “Respite” is the opportunity to take a break from caregiving. Time away creates space for taking care of yourself or other members of the family.
Our goal is for you to find someone you trust with your child because their child has similar needs, too. And, for them to find you!
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.
We will launch the Caregiver to Caregiver Respite Care Network in early 2024. In the meantime, please complete our survey to be added to our mailing list.
