With more grandparents raising or contributing significantly to the welfare of their grandchildren, it seems fitting to honor these not-yet-retired parental figures on Grandparents Day, September 10, 2006, with some facts from the U.S. Census -- that they're not alone.

According to the U.S. Census, Grandparents Day "was the brainchild of Marian McQuade of Fayette County, W.Va., who hoped that such an observance might persuade grandchildren to tap the wisdom and heritage of their grandparents. The first presidential proclamation was issued in 1978, and one has been issued each year since -- designating the first Sunday after Labor Day as National Grandparents Day."

There are about 56 million grandparents in the United States. Of those, about 5.7 million have grandchildren under 18 living with them. About 42 percent or 2.4 million grandparents are responsible for most of the basic needs (i.e., food, shelter, clothing) of one or more of the grandchildren who live with them. Of these caregivers, 1.5 million are grandmothers, 880,000 are grandfathers, and 1.7 million grandparent-caregivers are married. (Source: American FactFinder)

There's no rest for the weary as 1.4 million grandparents continue in the labor force who are also responsible for most of the basic needs of their grandchildren. About 920,000 grandparents have been responsible for caring for their grandchildren for at least the last five years. (Source: American FactFinder)

Many grandparents are caregivers with the additional pressures of poverty and disability. About 460,000 grandparents have incomes below the poverty level and are caring for their grandchildren. And hats off to the 700,000 grandparents with a disability who are caring for their grandchildren.

Grandparents from foreign lands are also caring for their grandchildren. About 320,000 foreign-born grandparents are responsible for caring for their grandchildren, and about 270,000 grandparents who speak English less than "very well" are responsible for caring for their grandchildren. (Source: American FactFinder)

Even if they don't have the primary care of their grandchildren, grandparents pitch in with day care. About 28 of preschool children with employed mothers are regularly cared for by their grandparent during the hours their moms spend employed outside the home. No other type of child care arrangement was more prevalent than by grandparents.

About 6.1 million children live with a grandparent; these children comprise 8 percent of all children in the United States. Of these children, 4.1 million lived in a grandparent's home and 1.9 million in a parent's home. About 2.2 million children reside with both a grandmother and a grandfather.

Published: September 8, 2006

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.