Grief Services

Losing a loved one to suicide is a painful and difficult experience that can leave survivors feeling varying complex emotions. Survivors of suicide loss are often confronted with many – sometimes unanswerable – questions in the wake of a friend or loved one’s death by suicide. Our Grief Services programs aim to combat the isolation loss survivors may feel by providing free services and resources to help navigate the grief that follows such a tremendous loss.

Safe Place Support Groups

Safe Place provides those who have lost someone to suicide a caring, confidential, and peer-based support group where they do not have to be alone with their grief.

Safe Place is free of charge and facilitated by Samaritans-trained volunteers, many of whom are loss survivors themselves. A welcoming, safe environment is created which honors and respects the needs of all participants.

Every loss survivor grieves differently and at their own pace. During a meeting, participants can choose to share as much or as little as they would like. Some participants bring a friend or family member for support; others bring photos of the person they lost. There is no “right” time to start attending – the only thing that matters is what feels right to each survivor.

Safe Place groups meet on a predetermined schedule, are free to attend, and are open to anyone who is grieving the loss of someone in their life to suicide.

Those interested in attending should fill out the Safe Place Interest form below. Questions may be directed to griefservices@capesamaritans.org.

“I wasn’t sure I would feel comfortable, but everyone was so kind. I listened to their stories and finally got the courage up to talk about my husband with people who had been through similar circumstances. They gave me much needed hope for the future.”

— Safe Place Participant

Care Packages

While talking with others is helpful for some, not everyone is interested in attending a support group and sometimes support groups aren’t available locally. We began our Care Packages program to help loss survivors receive support more privately and at times when they most need it.

Each Care Package contains books, brochures, articles, and online resources that other loss survivors have found helpful as they grieve. Specific books for children, parents, siblings, spouses, or friends can be included within each package as well. Care Packages are available free of charge, and can be mailed anywhere in the United States.

If you have lost someone to suicide, we can send the Care Package directly to your address. If you would like to give a Care Package to someone you know, we would like to mail the package to you so the survivor isn’t surprised to receive an unsolicited package. You may then share it with the loss survivor when the time is right.

Please fill out the form below to receive a Care Package. All information is kept confidential.

“I had no one I was able to talk to after losing my closest friend. People around me either didn’t understand or thought they would upset me more by talking about him. Nighttime was the worst for me. I could never sleep, always thinking ‘what if’ over and over again. So I kept the care package next to my bed. It’s helped me feel less alone.”

— Loss Survivor and Care Package Recipient

Interested in Volunteering?

Loss survivors who are a bit further out from their loss and have done their own grief work may be interested in being there for others who are in a different place and needing support. Safe Place meetings and LOSS Teams are possible because of these individuals who can understand the grief of the participants. If you’re interested in volunteers for Safe Place or the LOSS Team, please visit our Grief Services volunteer page.

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