National Support Resources for Crisis and Advocacy

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• National CASA/GAL Association for Children: Coordinates a network of court-appointed special advocates and guardians ad litem who speak up for the best interests of children who have experienced abuse or neglect in family court systems.
• National Children's Alliance (NCA): The national accrediting body for local Children's Advocacy Centers (CACs), bringing together law enforcement, medical professionals, and mental health providers to support child abuse victims.

Child Safety, Protection & Prevention

• Prevent Child Abuse America: The nation's oldest and largest organization focused on preventing child abuse and neglect before it happens through community-based programs, policy advocacy, and public education.
• National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC): Serves as a national clearinghouse and resource center for issues related to missing, abducted, and sexually exploited children.
• Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: Provides 24/7, confidential crisis intervention, information, and referrals for victims, parents, and community members.
  • Phone/Text: 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) 1    
    

Immediate Crisis & Domestic Violence Hotlines

• The National Domestic Violence Hotline: Provides 24/7, confidential support via phone, text, or live chat. Offers crisis intervention, safety planning, and local shelter referrals. 
  • Phone: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or TTY 1-800-787-3224 
  • Text: Text "START" to 88788
    988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: A 24/7, free, confidential national network offering immediate support for anyone experiencing mental health distress, emotional crisis, or thoughts of suicide.
    Phone/Text: Call or text 988 
• Crisis Text Line: Provides free, 24/7 crisis intervention via text message with a trained crisis counselor.
  • Text: Text "HOME" to 741741  

Specialized & Culturally Specific Helplines

• StrongHearts Native Helpline: A 24/7 culturally-centered domestic and sexual violence helpline for Native Americans and Alaska Natives.
  • Phone: 1-844-7NATIVE (1-844-762-8483) 
• loveisrespect: A project of the National Domestic Violence Hotline specifically tailored for teens and young adults to address dating abuse, healthy relationships, and safety planning.
  • Phone: 1-866-331-9474 | Text: Text "LOVEIS" to 22522 
• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): Operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline, connecting survivors with local service providers and confidential support.
  • Phone: 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) 

Advocacy, Education & Coalition Networks

• National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV): A social change organization representing state and territorial domestic violence coalitions, offering policy advocacy, safety net technology resources, and economic justice programs.
• National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (NRCDV): Provides comprehensive technical assistance, research, training, and policy development to support survivors and community-based programs.
• Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: Dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child abuse, offering 24/7 crisis intervention, information, and referrals in over 170 languages.
  • Phone/Text: 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453)
    

General & Family Grief Support

• The Dougy Center: A nationally recognized leader in grief support that provides resources, toolkits, and guidance specifically tailored for grieving children, teens, young adults, and their families.
• GriefShare: A nationwide network of local support groups and seminars led by people who understand the grieving process, offering community and structured support following the loss of a loved one.
• National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG): A nationwide organization that provides education, resources, and a searchable national database to help families find local childhood bereavement support services.

Loss of a Child or Pregnancy Loss

• The Compassionate Friends: Offers peer-to-peer support, local chapter meetings, and online communities for families grieving the loss of a child, grandchild, or sibling at any age.
• SHARE Grief Support: Provides specialized compassionate support, education, and resources for families who have experienced the tragedy of pregnancy loss, stillbirth, or infant loss.
• MISS Foundation: An international non-profit providing crisis support, mentoring, and community for families grieving the death of a child or baby. 

Crisis, Suicide & Sudden Loss

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Offers 24/7, free, confidential support for anyone experiencing severe emotional distress, crisis, or grieving a loss due to suicide. Call or text 988.
• Alliance of Hope for Suicide Loss Survivors: Provides online support groups, professional guidance, and community forums specifically designed to support survivors of suicide loss.
• TAPS (Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors): Offers 24/7 compassionate care, peer mentoring, and comprehensive grief resources for anyone grieving the death of a military loved one.
  • 24/7 Hotline: 1-800-959-TAPS (8277) 

Specialized Bereavement Resources

• Open to Hope: A non-profit platform offering articles, podcasts, and videos aimed at helping people find hope after experiencing loss.
• Actively Moving Forward (AMF): A program by HealGrief dedicated to supporting grieving college students and young adults through peer-led support networks.

Federal & Government Agencies

• Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP): A component of the U.S. Department of Justice, the OJJDP provides national leadership, grants, training, and resources to strengthen juvenile justice systems, prevent delinquency, and protect vulnerable youth.
• Children’s Bureau: Operating under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), this bureau focuses on child welfare, preventing child abuse, supporting foster care systems, and funding family preservation initiatives. 

Child Advocacy & Support Networks

• National Children's Alliance (NCA): The national accrediting body for Children's Advocacy Centers (CACs), supporting multidisciplinary teams (forensic interviewers, medical professionals, law enforcement, and mental health specialists) who investigate and respond to child abuse cases.
• Child Welfare League of America (CWLA): A coalition of public and private agencies advancing policies and practice standards to protect vulnerable children and support families.
• National Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) / GAL Association: Coordinates a network of trained community volunteers who speak up for abused or neglected children in family court to help ensure they reach safe, permanent homes. 

Legal & Justice System Reform

• Juvenile Law Center: The first non-profit public interest law firm for children in the U.S. It uses legal strategies, impact litigation, and policy advocacy to reform child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
• Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ): A nationwide association of State Advisory Groups and allies dedicated to preventing youth involvement in the justice system and ensuring fair, developmentally appropriate treatment for justice-involved youth.
• Campaign for Youth Justice (CFYJ): Focuses specifically on ending the practice of trying, sentencing, and incarcerating children in the adult criminal justice system.
• Center for Children’s Law and Policy (CCLP): Works to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in the juvenile justice system, reduce unnecessary incarceration, and improve conditions for detained youth. 

Youth Policy & Research

• The Annie E. Casey Foundation: A philanthropic foundation providing extensive data, research (such as the KIDS COUNT project), and practical strategies to build better futures for youth involved in the child welfare and justice systems.
• National Center for Youth Law (NCYL): Uses law and policy to transform the public systems—including education, health, and justice—that impact marginalized children and youth.

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: A free, confidential 24/7 hotline connecting individuals in suicidal crisis or emotional distress to trained counselors nationwide.
  • Phone/Text: Call or text 988
• Crisis Text Line: Free, 24/7 support via text for anyone experiencing mental health distress or crisis.
  • Text: Text HOME to 741741
• SAMHSA’s National Helpline: Operated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, this free 24/7 treatment referral and information service helps individuals and families facing mental or substance use disorders.
  Phone: 1-800-662-HELP (4357) | TTY: 1-800-487-4889

Mental Health Organizations & Advocacy

• NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness): The nation's largest grassroots mental health organization, providing support groups, education, advocacy, and a dedicated helpline for individuals and loved ones.
  • NAMI HelpLine: 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or text "NAMI" to 62640
• Mental Health America (MHA): Focuses on prevention, early intervention, and mental health screening tools, as well as community-based support services. 

Substance Abuse & Addiction Recovery

• FindTreatment.gov: A confidential, searchable directory hosted by SAMHSA to locate state-licensed providers for substance use disorders, addiction recovery, and mental health services across the U.S.
• Partnership to End Addiction: Dedicated to helping families navigate adolescent and young adult substance use, offering personalized support, coaching, and educational toolkits.
  • Text Support: Text CONNECT to 55753
• National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD): Provides education, advocacy, and community support resources to help individuals and families struggling with addiction. 

Specialized Populations

• The Trevor Project: The leading national organization providing 24/7 crisis intervention and suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ young people.
  • Phone: 1-866-488-7386 | Text: Text "START" to 678-678
• Veterans Crisis Line: Connects veterans and active service members in crisis with qualified Department of Veterans Affairs responders.
  • Phone: Call 988 and Press 1, or text 838255

• NamUs (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System): Funded by the National Institute of Justice, NamUs is the primary national clearinghouse for missing, unidentified, and unclaimed person cases. It allows families, law enforcement, and medical examiners to cross-reference cases and provides free forensic services (DNA testing, anthropology, fingerprint analysis).
• National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC): Serves as the central national resource for child abduction, missing juveniles, and child exploitation cases, providing immediate emergency response, age-progressed photos, and family advocacy.
• FBI Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (ViCAP): A national data center designed to collect, collate, and analyze violent crime information—specifically homicides, sexual assaults, and missing persons cases—to identify serial offenders and cross-jurisdictional connections. 

Cold Case Foundations & Investigative Support

• Cold Case Foundation: A national non-profit that connects under-resourced law enforcement agencies and families of victims with seasoned former investigators, profilers, and forensic experts to re-examine unsolved homicides and missing person cases.
• The Project EDAN & DNA Doe Project: Non-profit organizations utilizing advanced forensic genetic genealogy to identify unidentified human remains (John and Jane Does) and bring closure to long-unsolved missing persons cases.
• Season of Justice: A non-profit dedicated to funding advanced forensic testing (such as DNA extraction and genealogy analysis) for unsolved cold cases and missing person investigations.

Indigenous & Specialized Advocacy Networks

• Bureau of Indian Affairs - Missing and Murdered Unit (MMU): Provides cross-jurisdictional support, investigative resources, and coordination to address cases of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP).
• National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center (NIWRC): Offers advocacy, policy support, and resources addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women and relatives.

 National Advocacy & Rights Organizations

• National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC): A prominent non-profit advocating for victim rights, training professionals, and providing direct support, information, and referrals through the VictimConnect Resource Center.
  • VictimConnect Helpline: Call or text 1-855-4-VICTIM (1-855-484-2846)
• National Crime Victim Law Institute (NCVLI): A national non-profit that promotes and protects victims' rights in criminal justice systems through legal advocacy, education, training, and amicus curiae participation in precedent-setting court cases. 

Federal Agencies & Compensation Services

• Office for Victims of Crime (OVC): A component of the U.S. Department of Justice that administers the Crime Victims Fund, providing grants to state compensation and assistance programs, as well as funding training and victim-centered services nationwide.
• National Association of Crime Victim Compensation Boards (NACVCB): Helps victims locate state-specific crime victim compensation programs to assist with financial recovery (such as medical bills, lost wages, and counseling costs) resulting from a crime.  

Legal Representation & Specialized Support

• Legal Services Corporation (LSC): An independent non-profit established by Congress that funds civil legal aid programs across the country, helping low-income individuals access legal representation for civil matters, including protective orders and victim safety.
• National Domestic Violence Hotline - Legal Resources: Offers specialized support and referrals for survivors needing assistance with restraining orders, custody rights, and civil legal protections related to abuse.
• Battered Women’s Justice Project (BWJP): Focuses on civil and criminal justice system responses to intimate partner violence, offering technical assistance and resources for legal advocates and survivors.