Kid Support is a nonprofit, charitable organization formed in 2000 to help children cope when a parent or other family member is being treated for, or living with, cancer. We are committed to making adult-led, peer-support groups for children ages four to thirteen available to all families, regardless of their geographic location or economic status.

Kid Support's twelve-session program for children ages four to thirteen is one of the few programs of its kind. While many communities offer bereavement programs for children, very few offer programming for children living with cancer in the family.

Kid Support facilitators complete a high-quality training course and are provided with detailed, written instructions for conducting program activities. There is no charge for Kid Support groups.

Kid Support programming seeks to:

• Reduce the stress of parental cancer by providing support and teaching coping skills
  
  
• Strengthen the bond between parents and children by promoting family communication about cancer

In 2006 Kid Support formed an alliance with Gilda's Club Worldwide. Gilda's Club is now the primary provider of Kid Support programming, adapted and revised for use by Gilda's Club, in the regions in which Gilda's Clubhouses are located. The Kid Support at Gilda's Club program was implemented at Gilda's Club Chicago in Spring 2006. It will be available at the following eight additional Gilda's Clubhouses in Fall 2007:

• Gilda's Club Quad Cities (IA/IL)
• Gilda's Club Metro Detroit (MI)
• Gilda's Club Northern New Jersey
• Gilda's Club Rochester (NY)
• Gilda's Club Delaware Valley (PA)
• Gilda's Club Nashville (TN)
• Gilda's Club North Texas
• Gilda's Club Toronto (Canada)

For additional information about Kid Support at Gilda's Club Worldwide contact Joyce Bichler, M.S.W., A.C.S.W., Vice President, Program, Gilda's Club Worldwide, 322 Eighth Avenue, NY 10001 (telephone, 917-305-1200, OR    1-888-GILDA-4-U).

In an effort to remain a resource for communities nationwide, Kid Support continues to work with organizations, such as cancer treatment centers and schools, who wish to establish a Kid Support program in partnership with Kid Support, Inc. Individuals interested in submitting a proposal for implementing the Kid Support program can send inquires to info@kidsupport.org.