The BiG Story
eral between themselves and Mark
and Megan.
"I have one limitation for Jordan:
he must sleep at home, here with
us, every night — even when he is
with his parents. I feel he needs
that stability." Scully says. "That is
the whole point."
Jordan visits every weekend with
his father, who still lives in Farming-
ton Hills, and shares a dinnertime
hour with him a few times a week.
Megan comes in from out of state
to be with Jordan whenever she
can. Her parents, Pat and David
Rhea of Waterford, also are
involved in Jordan's life, and see him
once every other weekend.
Sheila Scully, a pharmacy technician for
the CVS drugstore chain, says she is either
Grandma or Mom to Jordan, depending
on what he feels like, while Andy, a retired
mechanical engineer, is always called
Grandpa.
The Scullys have seen many changes in
their lifestyle since Jordan came to live with
them.
"We had reached a point in our lives
where travel and eating at restaurants were
Family AlBum
Left: The Scullys
have one inflexi-
ble rule for Jor-
dan: he sleeps
at home each
night.
AppleTree
Cover: Jordan
Scully gets a
kiss from grand-
ma Sheila Scul-
ly, who is rais-
ing him with her
husband, Andy.
leisure activities," Sheila Scully says. "Our
entire life has changed, from making sure
we are home when Jordan gets off the
school bus, to child proofing [our house].
"Raising Jordan is hectic, but different
than raising my own two children, Mark
and Sheldon, over 30 years ago. We had
them at home all day."
She adds, "Like many children today, Jor-
dan leaves on the bus every morning to a
pre-kindergarten Head Start program at
Farmington Community School. As a part
of the curriculum he is learning sign lan-
guage, which is helping him
communicate with his parents."
Not surprisingly, the Scullys
include Jordan in nearly all
aspects of their lives now; one
An increasing number of grandparents
fun
activity is having a pajama
the legal guardians of their grandchildren.
party every night.
to 1990 U.S. Census data, about 2.3 million
"We have traded in watching
dren (3.6 percent) were being raised
20/20 for Barney, but we all
parents; just three years later, that fi,
enjoy
our time we spend togeth-
to 3.4 million, and continues to gro
er," Sheila Scully says.
The American Association of Retired Parma :
The Scullys do get a little per-
mates that some 5 million children under age
sonal time each week, thanks to
being raised by their grandparents today.
Sharon Wolok, a volunteer men-
Why have so many grandparents become .,
tor with Jewish Family Service.
again? The most frequent reasons cited are parenta
"Jordan is a specialJi ttle boy,"
substance abuse, neglect, physical or mental dines,*
Wolok says. "I spend a few
A number of Web sites are available f(*,
hours once a week with him in
ents who are parenting again. Two sites to visa a.
the evening and we do anything
• Off Our Rockers, which includes a newset er
from seeing a play together to
recommended reading list and chat room,
playing games.
http://www.sonic.netithorn/oor/
"Sheila and Andy are fulfilling
• Grandparents Parenting „. Again, which is a
an extraordinary role in Jordan's
support group for grandparents raising their grand-
life. I am not sure he exactly
children, at:
understands, but they are making
http://home.pacbell.netigrnyanie/w
a remarkable difference." ❑
Joshua Goldfaden
is Y2K ready and
looking forward to
celebrating Jan. 1,
2000. Joshua is
the son of David
and Abby Gold-
faden of Walled
Lake, the grand-
son of Judy Gold-
faden of West
Bloomfield and
William and
Kathy Winer of
Oak Park, and the
great-grandson of
Bertha Winer of
Walnut Creek,
Calif.
Resource
"ibwe;:Ett
Hey, Bradley, do
you have a bite for
us? This delicious
boy is Bradley Sil-
verman, 8 months,
enjoying turkey at
the home of Grand-
ma Nancy and
Zayde Raymond
Silverman. Bradley,
the son of Dr. Suzie
Merkle and Dr.
Alan Silverman,
especially loves
playing with big sis-
ter Brittany Rose.
His other proud
grandparents are
Dr. Richard and
Linda Merkle. All
reside in West
Bloomfield.
Do you have an adorable child whose picture you would
like to see in the Family Album? Photos must be clear, but
may be of any size, color or black and white; we regret
that we cannot accept photocopies or images sent via the
computer. Please include the child's name, age, parents'
names and city of residence. We also welcome informa-
tion about the child's interests and hobbies, and names of
siblings, grandparents and other close relatives. ALL
INFORMATION MUST BE TYPED. Please do not send a
photo of the same child more than once a year or call our
offices to ask when a picture will run in the newspaper. If
you would like your material returned, include a self-
addressed, stamped envelope. Mail to: Family Album,
c/o AppleTree, 27676 Franklin Road, Southfield, MI
48034.
1/7
2000
103