For these Foster Grandparents, it’s more than just a paycheck.

“I get a lot of hugs, wipes some tears and they tell me they love their Grandma, which just melts my heart,” said Karen Phillips, a Foster Grandparent at Seymour Head Start.

The Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award was given to 18 volunteer Foster Grandparents in the surrounding counties last Wednesday. These senior citizens have volunteered in classrooms throughout the Thrive Alliance service area for more than 10 years, providing personalized assistance and support to students needing extra help.

“Thinking of how this program helps the community as a whole, the kids improve their skills and success in the classroom which brings long-term success like graduation and economic success,” program director Russell J. Bonanno said. “This is something economic development organizations should be looking at. Also, it gives our senior citizens, who are often overlooked, an opportunity to get back into the community and get involved.”

Three Jackson County Foster Grandparents Pamela Michaels, Joann Wheeler, both serving 10 years, and Rita Thomas, serving 11 years, were honored for their service.

The Foster Grandparent program was established in 1965 under President Lyndon Johnson as a “War on Poverty” project to assist older Americans living on fixed incomes. It began as a pilot project of 20 programs to entice low-income people over 60 in community service to demonstrate the effectiveness of the service model.

The program quickly revealed the positive effect that the life experience of thriving older American made them especially well-suited to form meaningful relationships with children with exceptional or special needs.

Today, the program is for adults 55 and older who meet federal low-income eligibility guidelines. It is administered under the Corporation for National and Community Service, which provides federal grants for national service programs.

Locally, the Foster Grandparent program started in 1973 in Jennings County at the Muscatatuck State Developmental Center.

As state institutions were closing, the national Foster Grandparent programs were being shifted from the institutional to the community setting.

In July 1990, Aging and Community Services of South Central Indiana, doing business as Thrive Alliance, became the nonprofit sponsoring agency of the Foster Grandparent Program of South Central Indiana. Then the program expanded to serve Bartholomew, Brown, Decatur and Jackson counties along with Jennings in Head Start centers and elementary schools.

“We help children anywhere from pre-Head Start all the way to high school,” Bonanno said.

A typical day for a Foster Grandparent can vary depending on grade level, but most work one-on-one or in small groups with kids.

“In younger grade levels they might help with color recognition and alphabet and in higher grade levels its usually math and reading,” he said.

Bonanno said he has already seen a local impact this program has had on student’s success.

“With the recent legislation passed that if kids are not at a third-grade reading level they are suppose to repeat the year, I found Graham Creek Elementary School in Jennings County to find success,” he said. “The principal has incorporated them well by giving them extra training and they saw a 100% third-grade proficiency. The only school in the district to do so.”

Bonanno said while he doesn’t have proof the Foster Grandparents were the driving force behind the success, it was an interesting coincidence.

“Being with the kids is my favorite part,” Thomas said, who serves the Cortland area. “It gives me purpose and they keep me young.”

Sandy Staley, who is new to the program, will be serving Margaret R. Brown Elementary School in Seymour.

“I just love kids and it gives me something to do,” she said. “A lot of the kids there have trouble speaking English so, I hope to teach them a few words.”

Linda Morrissey, who has been serving Graham Creek Elementary school for more than 12 years, said she enjoys making a difference.

“When a parent tells you that you are the reason their child loves coming to school its a great feeling,” she said. “We just try to help them learn and be a positive influence in their lives.”