Homicide Support Programs

The Garden of Peace Memorial to Victims of Homicide was officially dedicated on September 23, 2005 and was attended by more than 1000 people.

The Garden of Peace is a Massachusetts memorial commemorating victims of homicide, and a living reminder of the impact of violence.  These victims are mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, friends and co-workers and a President. Families, schools, businesses and communities throughout Massachusetts bear the loss. The Garden is a visual testament to the need for eliminating violence and is a symbol of hope for peace and renewal in our lives, our community, and the world.

Located on the plaza between the McCormack State Office Building and 100 Cambridge Street in Boston, the Garden is more than just a memorial. From a dark granite orb, conceived by landscape designer Catherine Melina as representing grief, a dry streambed filled with stones bearing names of those lost to violence leads to the Ibis Ascending, a symbol of hope and peace created by artist Judy McKie whose only child Jesse was murdered in 1990.  For her, and for many of the other survivors of homicide working to make the Garden a reality, the memorial depicts the journey from death and grief to peace and renewal.

For more information about the Garden of Peace, how to include a victim’s name in the Garden, or what you can do to help, visit the Garden of Peace website.

Homicide Bereavement Services at Cambridge Hospital

Located at Cambridge Health Alliance as part of the Victims of Violence Program, the services of the Center for Homicide Bereavement are provided free of charge and include:

• Crisis intervention and ongoing bereavement counseling for individuals and families
• Bereavement support groups
• Victim advocacy
• Information and referral
• Coordination with community resources including other services of the Victims of Violence Team at the Cambridge Health Alliance.

For more information call (617)-591-6123

Massachusetts Office for Victim Assistance (http://www.mass.gov/mova/)

Provides services to victims through the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.

Boston Area Rape Crisis Center (www.barcc.org)

BARCC provides free services to survivors of rape and sexual assault, their friends and family, regardless of sex, race, physical/developmental disabilities, income, ethnicity, class, age, religion, or sexual orientation.

Violence Prevention Programs

Christoper Maki (http://www.chrismaki.org/)

The mission of the foundation is to educate all, especially the young, about the occurrence and the consequences of violence in our society today.

Matthew Eappen (http://www.mattyeappen.org/)

This foundation exists to safeguard the lives of babies and toddlers. Shaken Baby Syndrome kills or permanently injures hundreds of infants each year.

Melrose Alliance Against Violence (http://www.maav.org/)

This community-based organization focuses on outreach, education and community collaboration in order to raise awareness of the problems of violence.

REACH (http://www.reachma.org/)

REACH is committed to advancing the safety, healing, and empowerment of those who experience domestic or relationship violence, through direct services and education while promoting social justice for individuals and families of all backgrounds.