Overall, the Family Support Center, located in Boston, Mass., helps children and families cope with four specific crises: (1) diagnosis of a life-threatening illness or situation; (2) sudden death caused by accident, illness, murder, or suicide; (3) anticpated death resulting from illness or aging; and (4) jailing of a family member. The basis of the Center's work is the belief that crises involving loss of whatever kind produce predictable patterns of mourning. Also, prompt assistance to children and families in crisis can encourage healthy expression of grief and aid in the prevention of later emotional disturbance and symptom formation. The goal of the Center is to reach families not currently receiving mental health or counseling services and to help them return to their precrisis level of functioning. There is no time limit on the provision of services to particular families and individuals. The Center attempts to see as many family members as possible during the initial interview. Vignettes are presented to illustrate the type of children and families that have been served by the Center. The vignettes portray work with the family of an offender and with a female victim and her children. Fourteen references are listed.