Family Support

Discover how our family support services can provide assistance and guidance to help your family thrive. Explore resources, programs, and opportunities designed to strengthen bonds and enhance well-being.

Applications for the fiscal year 2024-2025 are now available!

The Family Support Program fiscal year runs July 1st thru June 30th of every year. Although applications are accepted year-round, open application period is January 1st thru March 30th of every year. If funding is not available, eligible applicants will be added to the waitlist in their county of residence. All funding requests must be approved by the Family Support Council. Not all who are eligible may be selected to receive funding.

Funding is limited and cannot be guaranteed beyond the current fiscal year.

Please note that you are applying for funding that will not be available until after July 1, 2024.

The Tennessee Family Support Program is a statewide grant program funded by the Tennessee Department of Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities (DIDD). TARP administers the Tennessee Family Support Program and distributes funding for Benton, Carroll, Gibson, Henry, and Weakley counties.

The program is funded by state dollars and designed to assist individuals with severe disabilities and their families to remain together in their homes and communities. The Family Support Program provides limited financial assistance to individuals with severe and/or developmental disabilities who reside in the community. Funding is available to all ages and all income levels.

Applicants must be full time residents of the State of Tennessee and have a permanent severe disability that results in significant limitations in some of the following categories: Self-Care, Receptive & Expressive Language, Learning, Mobility, Self-Direction, Capacity for Independent Living, and Economic Self-Sufficiency

Family Support is not a substitute for more comprehensive services provided under other programs, including the Medicaid HCBS Waiver, TennCare, Medicare, or private insurance. Individuals who reside in a nursing home, state funded living facility (including state funded foster care), or are receiving services through the Katie Beckett Waiver, DIDD Waiver Program, ECF Choices Program, TennCare Choices Program, or Pace Program are not eligible to receive Family Support Funding.

The primary purpose of the program is to support:

Families who have school-aged or younger children with severe disabilities
Adults with severe disabilities who choose to live with their families
Adults with severe disabilities not supported by other residential programs funded by state or federal funds

Services are designed to be flexible and responsive to individual or family needs. The program funds services and needs that are not covered by traditional resources. Services might include but are not limited to:

respite care
before care
after care
day care
home/vehicle modifications
specialized equipment/repair/maintenance
nutrition/clothing/supplies
personal assistance
transportation
homemaker services
health related costs
nursing
counseling
summer camp
evaluation

To apply for Family Support print off the form below, complete form, and return form and additional needed documentation to TARP by fax, email, or mail.

Download File

For more information, contact:

T.A.R.P. Center for Independent Living
1027 Mineral Wells Ave. Suite 7
Paris, TN 38242
731-644-0026 (office)
731-644-1116 (fax)
ilservices@tarp1.org

TARP administers the Tennessee Family Support Program and distributes funding for Benton, Carroll, Gibson, Henry, and Weakley counties. For other counties or for more information on this state wide program you can visit the Family Support Program – State of Tennessee Website