Grief Support
Alive’s Grief Center offers a place of comfort for anyone facing a loss. Support is available to caregivers and families coping with a life-limiting illness as well as children and adults who are bereaved.
Thanks to generous donors, Alive can provide these services at an affordable rate to the entire community, not just those with a loved one in our care.
We offer loss-specific support groups, family groups and expressive arts workshops for coping with grief each month. Join us to find support and community.
Contact us
Call 615-963-4732 or email griefsupport@alivehospice.org to find out how we can help.
Our Grief Counselors
Our expert grief counselors provide individual counseling, host expressive arts workshops, teach wellness practices, facilitate support groups, and run grief camps for kids.
They also provide education to other mental health professionals, schools, and community organizations via customized workshops and training sessions.
Services are paid for on a sliding scale, and thanks to our donors, no one is turned away.
Grief Camps
Alive’s overnight grief camp, Camp Forget-Me-Not, is for ANY child (aged 8-17) who has experienced the death of someone significant.
Grief Center Programs Designed Specifically for Young Grievers and Their Families
Tennessee ranks 7th in the country for childhood bereavement. One in ten children here lose a parent or sibling before graduating High School. Grief often challenges a family’s stability. Adult family members may not be able to cope with their own grief and attend to their child’s grief at the same time. Without support, children are at greater risk for substance use, mental health issues and poor academic performance. Alive’s counselors are experts in family dynamics and childhood bereavement.
- Alive is a Childhood Bereavement Changemaker addressing the public health crisis of childhood bereavement. Our professional grief counselors have significant experience working with grieving families. Children 3 and up receive developmentally appropriate support through one-on-one counseling, family and youth support groups, expressive arts workshops, a family retreat and an overnight camp just for kids and teens.
- Our licensed counselors set the bar in our community for supporting grieving children. They educate mental health professionals, schools and community organizations on supporting grieving children via customized workshops and training sessions. It is estimated one in ten will experience the death of a parent or sibling by age 18. Without support, childhood bereavement can lead to negative mental health and educational outcomes.
- Our grief support programs are open to anyone in the community who has experienced the death of someone significant. Clients don’t need to have had a loved one in our care.
- Thanks to donor support, we offer a sliding scale for individual counseling sessions. Our youth and family programs are free, apart from camp and family retreat. However, scholarships are available, and no one is turned away for a lack of funds.
Visit our Event Calendar for a current schedule of events.
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School-based Grief Support+
Our School-based Grief Support and Intervention Program goes beyond treating the immediate symptoms
of grief and teaches children and teens healthy coping skills for dealing with grief that they can use throughout their life.We provide education and support to administrators and staff, students and guardians. This includes consultation, crisis response counseling after a death in the school community, and on-site support groups for bereaved students. The program currently serves Davidson, Rutherford, Williamson, Cannon, and Wilson
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Family Retreat+
This special day is for families with children to explore grief together in a safe environment led by licensed counselors and volunteers. Families bond with one another through classic camp activities such as canoeing, archery, wood working, and a climbing wall. In small groups, they also connect with others via discussions and memorialization activities.
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Camp Forget-Me-Not+
Alive’s overnight grief camp, Camp Forget-Me-Not, is for any child (aged 8-17) who has experienced the death of someone significant. Camp Forget-Me-Not combines traditional camp fun (ziplining, swimming and water slides) with therapeutic activities from Alive’s licensed grief counselors to remember loved ones and make connections with peers who are also grieving. Teens have their own groups and activities.
Learn more about camp. -
Creative Hearts Club+
Creative Hearts Club is a six week support group for children and teens ages 8-17 using creativity to promote the self-expression of grief. Guardians attend the last day of the club for an “art show” and “dinner theater.” This event is a guided opportunity to increase the family’s communication around the loss.
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Youth Group+
Youth Group is a personalized educational program for ages 4-17. Grief education is tailored to each participant’s developmental level, and guardians receive weekly education worksheets to continue the discussion at home. Participants connect with other young people experiencing grief and learn coping tools for day-to-day life.
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Special Days Series+
Annual holidays can be especially hard when you are grieving. These creative workshops take place on Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Grandparent’s Day, and Bereaved Siblings Day annually. Creative memorial activities with guided discussions let families express their feelings while honoring the deceased.
“This was the most amazing experience for my daughter. I recommend anyone with a child who has experienced a loss be a part of the camp. The tools provided and being able to talk with other kids the same age is so impactful. My daughter wants to be a part of it every year and even become a camp counselor when she is old enough to help others in the future.”
-Parent of child who attended Camp Forget-Me-Not
“This program has amazing staff, the students feel safe and heard when session is taking place. The students use ALL the resources provided for their grief and talk about it on a daily basis. The parents are so thankful for this free opportunity. As a busy school counselor with so many needs, this is a huge weight lifted off my shoulders to reach these students that at time get forgotten.”
– Participant in school-based grief program
