Rainbows for All Children
Free Peer-Support Groups · About this organization
What you get
Free ($0) groups with trained facilitators to help children and caregivers work through grief, illness, family absence, and other major losses.
How to start
Use the group map or send Rainbows a find-a-group inquiry. Ask the Rainbows office how to join and what the meetings involve.
Good to know
- This is peer support, not counseling or therapy.
- A direct inquiry does not guarantee that an active local or virtual group has space.
The details, as published
Free age-based groups led by certified, background-checked facilitators help your child ages 3–18 talk through grief, significant illness, family absence and other major losses. Caregiver groups give you a place to talk too. Use the map or inquiry form to find an in-person or virtual group with space.
What help you may get
Peer And Emotional Support
Youth grief peer-support group
Age-based small groups use facilitator-led discussion, social-emotional learning, storytelling, narrative writing, coping, problem-solving, connection, hope, and safety activities.
Noncash help · Per Event
12–14 weeks per award
Can cover
- facilitated peer-support meetings
- age-appropriate grief curriculum
- coping and problem-solving activities
- Celebration Days
Does not cover
- professional counseling or therapy
- Free to families.
- Repeat eligibility is not published.
- Rainbows youth curricula are described as 12–14 week programs including Celebration Days.
Bereavement And Memorial Support
Bereavement and loss support
Your child can talk with peers and trained facilitators about death, serious illness, separation, family absence, crisis or other major losses. The 12-week Prism caregiver group gives you a place to talk alongside your child's group when it is available.
Noncash help · Per Event
Can cover
- peer grief support
- significant-illness support
- caregiver group options
Does not cover
- clinical mental-health treatment
- Free to families.
Why this may help
Bereavement And Memorial Support: Peer grief groups give your child a place to talk after a loss, with group options for caregivers too.
Check the main eligibility rules
Diagnosis
B-ALL is in scope. The official intake includes significant physical illness as a grief type, and the organization serves youth affected by a family member's significant illness; a B-ALL family can fit that rule even though the group is not cancer-specific.
Age
Age 3 to age 18, measured at application.
- Youth groups are divided by age; Prism is a parent/caregiver group.
Treatment status
Active Treatment, Maintenance Treatment, Post Treatment, Survivorship, Palliative Or Hospice, Bereavement
- The program is based on grief, loss, uncertainty, or crisis rather than the patient's treatment phase.
- Participation depends on a matching local or virtual group and site-specific availability.
- Programs are free to families.
Where you live and where your child is treated
Where your family lives
No residence restriction is published.
- No residence restriction is published, but an active local or virtual group must be available.
Where your child is treated
No treatment-location restriction is published.
Where the service, camp, stay, or experience happens
- Rainbows community sites — In-person groups operate through schools, faith organizations, libraries, community centers, and other mapped sites.
- Rainbows virtual groups — Virtual programming can be offered for ages 10 and older; call to ask about current availability.
How to get started
Does a social worker or care team need to start it? No. A required care-team start is not published; the family can use the available route below.
Who can start: Parent Or Guardian, Caregiver
- Search the official map by ZIP or postal code and radius, or prepare the direct inquiry with location, child age range, grief type, and contact details.
- Submit the find-a-group inquiry if no suitable active site appears, or call for current virtual programming for an eligible child age 10 or older.
- Respond with matching group information, normally within one to two business days for form inquiries.
- Confirm the matched site's active status, schedule, capacity, and enrollment steps before relying on placement.
Ways to apply or ask
- Web Form · Open form or page — Direct inquiry below the live group map.
- Phone · 847-952-1770 — Published for map, form, and virtual-programming help.
Documents to prepare
No documents are listed.
- Rainbows staff or the mapped site provides the group-specific registration details after matching.
Availability and timing
| Program | Active |
|---|---|
| Applications | Open |
| Funding or space | Limited |
| Application window | Rolling |
| Last checked | Sep 26, 2026 |
- The Find a Group inquiry form is live with no closed, paused or waitlist text: "Fill out the form below and we will answer your find a group inquiry in 1-2 business days."
- Individual map listings may be non-active or "dependent on interest and need", so confirm the matched group has space.
- The inquiry is rolling, but individual group operation and capacity vary by site.
- Published response time for find-a-group inquiries.
Limitations and things to confirm
- This is peer support, not counseling or therapy.
- A direct inquiry does not guarantee that an active local or virtual group has space.
- Virtual groups are available only for ages 10 and older, so call the Rainbows office to confirm current programming.
- You can ask about a group when B-ALL has brought significant-illness grief or family disruption, but these are not cancer-specific groups.
- Which current group has capacity for this family?
Official sources
Program details were last verified Sep 26, 2026. Availability can change, so check the official program before applying.
- Find a Youth Grief Support Group · checked Sep 26, 2026
- Rainbows for All Children | Grief Support for Youth · checked Aug 27, 2026
- Children's Grief Support Groups · checked Sep 26, 2026