Charlotte program that keeps kids from jail finds a way to survive during pandemic
Nita Ramey credits a Charlotte-based non-profit for helping her and her 10-year-old granddaughter through some challenging times.
It’s stressful enough raising four grandchildren whose parents are in prison, she said.
Then 10-year-old Alexis got in trouble with the courts, Ramey told the Observer on Thursday.
She and Alexis have been attending court-ordered group sessions through Charlotte-based Life Connections of the Carolinas. The non-profit agency keeps kids out of jail and their families connected.
That’s why Ramey said she was “terrified at first” when government Stay at Home orders for the novel coronavirus banned gatherings of such size.
Her fright turned to happiness, she said, when the agency managed to continue the sessions — online, via Zoom.
The sessions are part of the agency’s Strengthening Families Program and are held three times a week for Mecklenburg families and once a week for people in Union and Alexander counties.
After a group meal, the youths break into sessions by age and the adults go into a separate session, before they all join together again.
The organization now has a delivery service take meals to each family’s home, Jonelle Giulianelli, who coordinates the sessions, told the Observer Thursday. That’s a much more expensive option, however, and the agency hopes the public can respond with donations, she said.
About 100 to 125 Mecklenburg families participate in the sessions each year and 25 families in Union and Alexander, she said.
Various agencies recommend families to Life Connection programs, while the juvenile courts order others to participate. Three weekly sessions in March drew 11 to 17 families, she said.
Life Connections of the Carolinas, based in Charlotte’s NoDa section, has 16 programs in 10 counties, also including mentoring, vocational and restorative justice programming.
A new volunteer
Ramey said the agency is a lifeline for her family, and has “done wonders” for them.
The 68-year-old has raised her grandchildren while working as a cook and cashier at Gordon’s Gas & Grill in Mineral Springs. Her husband is in and out of rehab after suffering strokes, she said.
Luckily, her sister supervises the youngest of Ramey’s grandchildren when Ramey is at work. Ramey’s 16-year-old granddaughter assists.
Yet the demands can still be overwhelming, she said.
She said she hesitated at first to attend the sessions offered by Life Connections. Now she doesn’t want them to end, she said.
When the 10 weeks of sessions are up for her and her granddaughter, Alexis, who turns 11 this weekend, “I’m letting them know I want to stay on as a volunteer,” Ramey said.
This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 6:00 AM.