Grief is a natural response to the loss of someone or something very dear to us.  Anyone can experience grief and loss, but each person is unique in how he or she copes with these feelings. The single most important factor in healing from loss is having the support of other people. Most especially, support from those with experience in dealing with personal loss can help ease the pain and promote healing.  Resources for such grief support are provided on this page.

Note: Because grief is a normal emotional reaction, it is not a pathological condition.  Individuals experience and express such losses in their own way and time, and there is no right or wrong way to grieve.  But there are more healthy or helpful means of expressing and coping with the painful feelings, ones that eventually allow healing and recovery.  It’s normal to feel sad, numb, or angry following a major loss such as the death of a loved one.  Feelings of grief can linger long after the loss, arising during anniversaries or at unexpected times.  But eventually, these emotions become less intense as you accept the loss and start to move forward.  If your grief-related thoughts, behaviors, or feelings are extremely distressing, unrelenting, or interfering with daily functioning for an extended period of time, it can be a sign that your grief has developed into a more serious problem, such as complicated grief or major depression.  Whether your grief is new, or has not eased over time and is becoming a concern, it can be helpful to seek support from persons or organizations experienced in the grief process.

Contents on this page:

1. Grief Support Resources in Santa Clara County

Centre for Living with Dying – Call: 408-850-6145 
Bill Wilson Center’s Centre for Living with Dying program provides emotional support to adults and children facing life-threatening illness or those feeling the trauma of having a loved one die. The Centre also provides crisis intervention services and broad-based educational programs on grief and loss. Whether clients choose individual counseling or grief groups, they are gently given tools for coping with loss and trauma. Individual and small group grief support is available for adults, children, teens and families. Fees are on a sliding scale. The Centre offers support groups that address the following topics:

  • Dimensions of Grief
    Dimensions of Grief is intended for adults who have experienced the loss of a loved one.
  • Healing Heart – Family Grief Groups
    The Healing Heart group is intended for families with children who have lost a loved one. For more information on this program, please click here: Healing Heart.
  • Loss of a Child
    This grief support group can help individuals who have experienced the death of a child.
  • Loss of a Parent
    This grief support group assists individuals who have experienced the death of a parent.
  • Loss of a Partner / Spouse
    This grief support group is designed for individuals who have experienced the loss of a partner or spouse.

For more information, dates or to register for a group, please contact Bill Wilson Center at (408) 850-6145.

  • Crisis Incident Stress Management Team – The Bay Area Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team will respond with immediate support and intervention, provided in both a group and individual setting, during incidents where there has been a death or other traumatic, life-threatening event. First responders, such as police, fire, paramedic, dispatch, hospital and social services personnel receive support professionally and in their personal lives. The Bay Area CISM Team provides crisis intervention to our community as well, when there has been a death or critical incident in our schools, neighborhoods, businesses or community agencies.

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Sutter Health Hospice of the Valley – Call: 408-559-5614   Email: info@hospicevalley.org
**NEW**  Support groups and individual sessions are currently offered online or via phone
The Hospice of the Valley Center for Grief and Loss offers a grief counseling program run by licensed therapists (currently free of charge):

  • Individual grief support sessions with professionally trained therapists or supervised Marriage and Family Therapist Trainees/Interns
  • Grief support groups – groups are offered regularly for partner or senior partner loss, adult/parent loss, suicide loss and The Villages resident drop-in group. Additional groups are offered as necessary and individual assessments are required.
  • Living with an illness support groups
  • Educational sessions
  • Annual memorial service events
  • Getting through the holidays workshop

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KARA – Kara service options may include both in-person and telehealth (phone or video meetings) support services. Inquiries from individuals, families, and organizations should be submitted through this contact form or by calling KARA at 650-321-5272.
457 Kingsley Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94301
Located in the North Bay/Palo Alto – Kara provide supports for adults, children and organizations anticipating or grieving a death. Kara’s group and one-to-one peer support services are donation-based and Kara’s therapy services are provided for a reasonable fee.

  • Individual Peer Support – Adults can receive individual sessions with one of Kara’s volunteer peer counselors.
  • Peer Support Groups – Regularly scheduled ongoing groups as well as drop-in adult grief groups are offered for specific losses such as suicide, adult siblings, spouse/partner, parents grieving the death of a child.
  • Grief Therapy – Fee-based professional psychotherapy is offered to bereaved adults, teens, children, couples and families whose loss is complicated by higher degrees of trauma, and/or additional relational or emotional circumstances. A sliding scale fee is charged for this service.
  • Crisis Support – Kara offers on-site crisis support services to schools, community organizations and businesses to help process their grief when a death has occurred or is anticipated.
  • Caregiver Support – The quarterly Caregivers Circle is designed to anyone charged or entrusted with the responsibility of care-giving for people with needs that include chronic or life-threatening illnesses to caring for and accompanying others through their personal experience of grief.
  • A free bereavement camp for youth ages 6-17 who have experienced the death of a significant person in their lives. Children and teens come together for one weekend to participate in traditional fun camp activities and peer support focused grief activities. Campers are supported throughout the weekend by Kara’s highly trained volunteers and staff. FLYER

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Pathways Home Health & Hospice – Call: 888.755.7855   Email: bereavement@pathwayshealth.org
Pathways opens its bereavement services to anyone in the community who has experienced the loss of a loved one within the last 13 months, whether they had hospice care or not. Although our bereavement support is at no cost, we encourage donations to the Pathways Foundation to ensure that we can always continue to provide grief support. Pathways has an array of bereavement services to help people as they navigate this new territory without their loved one:

  • Grief Counseling Grief counseling begins for many people with a call to Pathways for bereavement support after the death of a loved one. Our bereavement therapists have had extensive training and experience and have the passion to help those in grief.
  • Grief Support Groups – Grief support groups are held throughout the year with many groups beginning the second week of September through early June and some through the summer. Pathways has support groups for spouses, for adults who lose parents, and for those who have lost an adult child.
  • Memorial Events –
    • Celebration of Light Memorial Service  Each December, we remember our loved ones with music, readings, reflections and a candle-lighting ritual that highlights the importance of light in six major faith traditions.
    • Afternoon of Remembrance Memorial Service  In May, with the ushering in of Memorial Day, graduations, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, we are often reminded of the absence of a loved one. Pathways offers a time to come together through music, readings, reflections and collectively creating a large flower bouquet.

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Heart of Hope Asian American Hospice Care – Call: 408-986-8584

Heart of Hope Asian American Hospice Care offers bereavement services targeted to the Asian American south bay community, regardless of whether or not the loved one is or was a hospice patient. HHAAHC provides culturally and linguistically competent pre- and post-bereavement support through free individual and family counseling, home visit, telephone contact, and support groups.

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GriefShare – Call: 800-395-5755  Email: info@griefshare.org  **NEW** Virtual sessions now offered
GriefShare offers Christian Support for those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones. The Support Groups meet weekly. They offer a compassionate community of support . The Support Groups include three elements: Video Seminar from experts, Group discussion and Personal Study for Reflection. Find the GriefShare Group nearest to you.

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The Compassionate Friends of Santa Clara County  Call: 408-249-9570   Email: judy@lombardodrilling.com
National TCF Website: http://www.compassionatefriends.org
If you are a member (or a friend) of a family that has suffered the death of a child, The Compassionate Friends is here to help you and provide support for the family.  Feel free to contact TCF’s National Office at 877-969-0010 or nationaloffice@compassionatefriends.org.

  • Santa Clara Monthly Support Group (for people who have suffered the death of a child) – 1st Tuesday of each month, 7:30 pm at Bethel Church, 1201 S. Winchester Blvd, San Jose, CA. Contact: 408-249-9570 or Email: judy@lombardodrilling.com
    The Compassionate Friends also offers “virtual chapters” through an Online Support Community (live chats).

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Discovery Counseling – Call: 408-778-5120    **NEW** Teletherapy sessions now available.
16275 Monterey Road Suite C, Morgan Hill, Ca 95037

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HelpGuide.org Coping with Grief and Loss – A comprehensive article on understanding the grief process.  It describes grief and its common symptoms, myths and facts, tips on coping with grief and when to seek help.

The Grief Toolbox: A comprehensive resource for people experiencing grief. Articles, other resources, and an online art gallery help support individuals in the grieving process. The Grief Toolbox also provides a support group locator.

Grief and Loss – Guide to coping with grief and loss, including normal grief reactions to expect. (University of Texas Counseling and Mental Health Center)

Complicated Grief – Compares acute and complicated grief, and lists the warning signs and symptoms that suggest acute grief has progressed to major depression or complicated grief.

Grieving.com – A forum resource for people to connect with others and share stories of loss and healing. The forum has more than 45,000 active members and features topics ranging from terminal illness and sudden death to the loss of a pet.

Recover From Grief – Provides valuable information about the grieving process as well as coping strategies. Site visitors can view a comprehensive “grief guidebook” and participate in a seven-part grief work e-course. Recover From Grief also provides a space to create memorials for loved ones or tell personal stories, and offers a “grief relief” audio program.

The Compassionate Friends – A nationwide nonprofit organization,  designed to support and give resources to families who are coping with the death of a child. In addition to its wealth of information about healing grief, TCF holds national and regional conferences, facilitates online and in-person support groups for grieving families, and broadcasts a weekly web-radio series.

National Alliance for Grieving Children – A nationwide platform that connects professionals, consumers, and volunteers whose mission is to support children and teens through the grieving process. NAGC offers online education, a searchable support group database, and hosts an annual symposium about child grief.

Bereaved Parents of the USA – Group that connects grieving parents with other bereaved parents, grandparents, and siblings for one-on-one support. The site offers a newsletter, articles and poems, and many resources and links for grieving families to guide them through the grieving process. It also hosts an annual gathering where bereaved parents can share their stories with others and participate in grief workshops.

Soaring Spirits International – National support organizations for widows and widowers.  Has newly widowed information packets, support groups, online communities and widow pen pals.

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention – National group that funds research, offers educational programs, advocates for public policy, and supports those affected by suicide.

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2. Issue-Specific Grief Support

* Note: These support groups are for people who are grieving loved ones who died via suicide (not for people who have themselves attempted suicide)

Santa Clara County Suicide Prevention and Crisis Survivors of Suicide Group –
Contact Eddie Subega: (408) 885-6216 
Free monthly suicide support group offered by Santa Clara County Behavioral Health. Group meets on the first Monday of the month from 6 – 7:30 pm at Valley Medical Center. Participants are welcome on a drop-in basis after talking to the contact person.

Sutter Health Hospice of the Valley Suicide Loss Support Group –
Call: (408) 559-5614   Email:  info@hospicevalley.org
This free weekly suicide support group is offered in repeating 6-week sessions, facilitated by a licensed MFT.  **NEW**  Currently these sessions are offered virtually via WebEx. Call for more information.

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) has an excellent website for information, resources, support referrals, and other ways to cope with a suicide loss.
AFSP offers personal one-on-one online support for survivors of suicide through its Healing Conversations program. Healing Conversations gives survivors of suicide loss the opportunity to speak with volunteers, who are themselves loss survivors.

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GRASP (Grief Recovery After a Substance Passing) was created to offer understanding, compassion, and support for those who have lost someone they love through addiction and overdose. GRASP offers support, direction and a helping hand via the GRASP Facebook group, and through local chapter groups.

GRASP San Jose Chapter Support Group
1st Wednesday of each month, 6:30 – 8:00 pm. (Please contact facilitator for exact location.)
Facilitator: Konne Ainsworth
Email Address: teacherkonne@yahoo.com
Primary Phone Number:(408) 718-9284

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 The National Organization of Parents Of Murdered Children is a national non-profit self-help organization designed solely to offer emotional support and information about surviving the loss of a loved one to murder.

Parents of Murdered Children Peninsula/South Bay Support Group –
2nd Monday of Month, 6:30 – 8:30 pm
The Center for Creative Living, 1460 Koll Circle #C, San Jose, CA 95112   (Please park and enter in back for easy access)
Contact: Colette Krinock  (408) 396-7659, or twinone58@comcast.net

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Helping After Neonatal Death (HAND) of the Bay Area –

  • If you’re a grieving parent in need of support, please call HAND at (650) 367-6993.
  • HAND of the Bay Area offers several different types of on-line and in-person meetings to support bereaved parents at all stages of loss and grief. All meetings are peer-led and free of charge.

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 SAGE Pet Caregiver Support Group – SAGE offers a free Pet Caregiver Support Group to any one of our clients from SAGE’s four Bay Area locations.

You must register for each session you want to attend by e-mailing socialwork@sagecenters.com.  You will then receive confirmation of your registration as well as further details.
The group now meets twice a month:

  1. VIRTUALLY on the 2nd Wednesday of each month from 7-8:30pm
  2. IN PERSON on the 4th Saturday of each month from 10-11:30am at SAGE Campbell

Humane Society Silicon Valley Companion Animal Loss Support Group
 1st Tuesday of the month 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. (offered virtually only)
RSVP to Vicki vickioliveriomft@gmail.com for instructions on how to call in.
Anyone who has experienced a loss or anticipates such a loss is invited to attend the HSSV Companion Animal Loss Support Group. The group helps grieving pet owners heal the pain by working through their feelings of loss, anger, and depression. You may attend an unlimited number of meetings and are encouraged to return to help others work through their grief even after your own needs are met. This service is provided at no fee for our community; however, we welcome donations to help provide lifesaving services for our animals here at the shelter.

Animal grief support web sites: