About The Children’s Room
The Children’s Room is the largest, independent non-profit in Massachusetts that is solely dedicated to supporting grieving children, teens and families. The mission of The Children’s Room is to help grieving children, teens, and families in our communities to go on living and loving fully. We seek to ensure that children and their families who have suffered the death of a loved one are embraced by a safe and caring community that they can rely upon to help them cope with the grieving process.
The Children’s Room:
• Does not charge a fee and welcomes all families regardless of their ability to offer a donation
• Supports children ranging in age from 3 to 18, and places them in age-appropriate groups
• Offers groups for parents and guardians at the same time as the children
• Currently has seven ongoing groups in Arlington and one in Framingham
• Presently supports over 200 children who have experienced the death of a parent or sibling
• Is based in Arlington and Framingham, but serves families from 75 cities and towns in the greater Boston area and New Hampshire
• Was the first in the Boston area to offer ongoing bereavement support to children
• Operates with bereavement professionals and 100 trained volunteers
• Relies solely on individual contributions and grants for financial support (individuals 2/3, grants 1/3)
Our History
The Children’s Room began in February 1993 when a group of health care professionals was trained by the nationally recognized Dougy Center for Grieving Children, located in Portland, Oregon. In April 1999, The Children’s Room Center for Grieving Children and Teenagers, Inc. opened as an independent, nonprofit center. The Children’s Room is now the largest nonprofit in Massachusetts providing support group services to children, teens and families after the death of a parent or a sibling. We help children from over 75 communities in Eastern Massachusetts.
Seventy-five percent of children enrolled in this program have experienced the death of a parent and the remainder have lost a sibling. Over fifteen percent of our families have experienced the suicide death of a father, which has doubled over last year. This rapid growth reflects our collaboration in the community with suicide programs.
The Children’s Room fills a critical gap that exists in support services for bereaved children and teenagers. Unresolved grief can lead to problems including lack of motivation, school failure, theft, depression, psychosis, difficulty concentrating, vandalism, self-mutilation, substance abuse, and suicide.