Coping With Life After Michael

Since the passing of the King of Pop on June 25, 2009, the question on many people’s mind is how will Michael's children and family cope with this great loss. According to an article in “People” magazine, a judge has awarded custody the children to Michael’s mother, Katherine Jackson. Visitation rights have been granted to Deborah Rowe, the biological mother of both Prince Michael I and Paris. Katherine Jackson was also granted custody of Michael’s youngest son, Prince II (Blanket), who was mothered by a surrogate. At the time of his passing, Michael had sole custody of all of his children. Since Michael was financially supporting his mother at the time of his death, a January 2010 court date has been scheduled to resolve this matter. At the 2010 Grammy Awards, Prince Michael I and Paris were seen accepting the award for Lifetime Achievement in their father’s honor.

Michael's family has become a tight-knit community offering the children a taste of normalcy. The Jackson brothers (Marlon, Randy, Tito and Jermaine) can be seen on A&E in their reality show “The Jackson's: A Family Dynasty.” All of Michael's family members have become very active in the raising of his children, including sisters Janet and LaToya, with sister Maureen (Rebbie) offering more day-to-day assistance. Looking forward, Michael’s family is excited about the release of his DVD/Blu-ray movie “This Is It.” With the music world preparing to re-record Michael and Quincy Jones’ “We Are the World” collaboration, musicians are more than willing to lend a hand. All proceeds will go to help benefit the victims of the Haiti earthquake.