About Us

Uplift Center for Grieving Children was established in 1995 as part of the Bereavement Program at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children. Recognizing the growing need for high-quality and free grief services in Philadelphia, the program incorporated as an independent nonprofit in 2000.

Over the past 25 years, Uplift has grown from offering a handful of support groups to providing a suite of grief and mental health support services. As the demand for grief and mental health support has surged both locally and nationally over the last several years, Uplift seeks to meet the rising urgency for high-quality services while reducing barriers to access fostered by historic and systemic inequalities.

Uplift offers peer support groups for children and teens in grades K-12th who have experienced the death of someone significant in their lives. Peer support and a caring adult presence help to reduce the feelings of isolation and loneliness that children often experience after death.

Uplift’s grief groups prioritize the agency, voice, and choice of participants. Under the supervision of Uplift’s team of Master’s degree-level clinicians, participating youth use creative activities, games, mindfulness and grounding techniques, and learn effective grief management skills. All groups are divided by age and developmental level to best tailor our support programs. Uplift also offers caregiver groups to support adults raising a grieving child. All programs for grieving children and families are provided free of charge.