Care Dimensions
Grief groups, workshops, and counseling from Massachusetts' nonprofit hospice — children's programs plus suicide-, substance-, and pet-loss groups.
Grief Support Boston, MA
Grief support groups in Boston
Real, local places to take your grief in Boston — starting with the city's dedicated grief organizations. The Boston area has 30 Medicare-certified hospice programs in this metro alone, every one required to offer bereavement support — and the 8 nonprofit ones below are where free community grief groups usually live.
Local & Verified
Boston’s dedicated grief organizations
Established local centers whose whole mission is grief support.
JF&CS — Bereavement Supports
Free non-sectarian peer bereavement groups led by trained facilitators, including partner loss, parent loss, and suicide-loss groups.
The Hospice Route
Hospice grief programs open to the Boston community
Every Medicare-certified hospice must offer bereavement support, and nonprofit hospices in particular usually run free grief groups open to anyone — whether or not your person was in their care. Call and ask for the bereavement coordinator.
- Good Shepherd Community CareNewton, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 1984 · (617) 969-6130
- Tufts Medicine Care At HomeLowell, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 1985 · (978) 552-4000
- Beth Israel Lahey Health At HomeWoburn, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 1993 · (781) 756-2488
- All Care Hospice INCLynn, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 2005 · (781) 586-1608
- Legacy Lifecare Hospice and Palliative CareChelsea, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 2008 · (617) 889-0779
- Visiting Nurse & Community CareArlington, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 2009 · (781) 643-6090
- Hebrew Seniorlife Hospice Care, INCDedham, MA · Nonprofit · Medicare-certified since 2014 · (781) 234-9950
- Care Dimensions INCDanvers, MA · Nonprofit
Plus 22 more Medicare-certified hospices across the metro — every one searchable, with inspection results and family ratings, on Medicare Care Compare. All of them provide bereavement support to families in their care; the nonprofit and government ones above are the likeliest to run open community groups.
Loss-Specific & Meeting Locally
National networks with groups in the Boston area
These come straight from each network’s own chapter locator — real groups, run by people who have lived the same loss.
After the death of a child · The Compassionate Friends
- TCF of BostonBoston, MA
- Central Middlesex ChapterNewton, MA
- South Shore ChapterHingham, MA
- North Shore-Boston ChapterNorth Reading, MA
- Central Middlesex ChapterConcord, MA
- TCF of the Merrimack ValleyBradford, MA
- North Central Massachusetts ChapterLeominster, MA
- Worcester ChapterWorcester, MA
Peer groups of bereaved parents, grandparents, and siblings. More support after the loss of a child →
After a suicide loss · Survivors of Suicide Loss groups
- SS HopeProvidence, RI
- SOSL Adult Support GroupMerrimack · Nashua, NH
- SOSL Teen Support GroupNashua, NH
- Murder-Suicide Loss Support GroupFramingham, MA
- Hope TogetherPlympton, MA
- Suicide Loss Support GroupKingston, MA
- Safe PlaceProvidence, RI
- Survivors of Suicide LossLittleton, MA
- Samaritans Parents GroupHolliston, MA
- Kitchen Table Conversation for Suicide Loss SurvivorsTaunton, MA
- Move4WardFramingham, MA
Meeting times and contacts are on AFSP’s support group finder. More support after suicide loss →
For grieving children & teens · NACG member centers
- Roberts Program for Sudden Unexpected Death in Pediatrics- Boston Children's HospitalMassachusetts, United States
- Empower Grieving Children, Inc.Massachusetts, United States
- Club STARMassachusetts, United States
- Newton Play TherapyMassachusetts, United States
- HEARTplayMassachusetts, United States
- Camp Erin – BostonMassachusetts, United States
- Wildflower, Inc.Massachusetts, United States
- The Good Grief Program at Boston Medical CenterMassachusetts, United States
- The Children's RoomMassachusetts, United States
- Diane MoranMassachusetts, United States
Members of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief serving the Boston area. More support for children & teens →
By Type of Loss
Groups that fit your specific loss
A widow, a bereaved parent, and someone mourning a dog need different rooms. These pages list the national networks — most with Boston chapters or weekly online groups.
Loss of a Spouse or PartnerLoss of a ChildPregnancy & Infant LossPet LossSuicide LossMilitary & Veteran LossChildren & TeensLoss of a Parent
Want this list in your inbox?
One email with every network on this page, plus a short guide to choosing a group. No newsletter, no follow-ups — just the list, to read when you’re ready.
Questions
What families ask
Are grief support groups in Boston really free?
Mostly, yes. Hospice bereavement groups are free — Medicare requires the service — and nonprofit grief centers are typically free or donation-based. If a fee ever blocks you, say so; it is almost always waived.
How do I actually use this hospice list?
Call one nonprofit hospice near you and ask for the bereavement coordinator — that person’s job includes knowing every grief group in the area, including ones no website lists. You do not need to have used the hospice, and there is nothing to sign up for. One call, one question: “What grief groups are meeting near me right now?”
What if I need a group for my specific loss?
Start with our loss-type pages — spouse, child, pet, suicide loss and more. The national networks there run local chapters and scheduled online groups, which is often the fastest route to a room that fits.
While You’re Here
Free tools, if they’d help
Made for the same reason this directory exists. No account, no charge.
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