The Children’s Bereavement Center of South Texas (CBCST) is the only free-standing organization of its kind in the San Antonio and south Texas region that is solely focused on the grief support needs of children, teens and young adults who have suffered the death of a loved one. The CBCST opened its doors to 19 families with one paid staff member and 15 trained volunteers on November 4, 1997.

Today, the CBCST employs five full-time professional staff and utilizes over 70 trained volunteers per month to serve an unduplicated 350 youth in grief support programs annually. Over the past ten years, the CBCST has been a source of hope and healing for thousands of grieving young people through programs dedicated to helping them process the profound psycholgical and emotional challenges of death and loss.

In our peer support programs, clients are divided into group nights, each dedicated to the type of loss experienced. Each program group meets twice per month in our beautiful homelike setting, which provides a safe, nurturing environment conducive to healing. These programs are supervised by a Program Director (Licensed Professional Counselor) and administered by Program Coordinators. Peer support programs are currently offered free of charge to our clients.

The CBCST has also incorporated a sliding scale, fee-based individual and family counseling program, which is administered by a Licensed Mental Health Professional that is specifically focused on each individual’s grief.

The Center is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit agency. We are completely privately supported from donations from individuals, foundations and corporations. We receive no support from federal, state, or local governments, no insurance reimbursements or third party payments, and there is no charge for our peer support programs. There is a suggested donation of $25 for all intake services. These intake fees may be waived based on income.