a peer support program focusing on bereavement, grief, and mourning in individuals who have lost a spouse. The program draws on the experience and compassion of people who have suffered similar losses, providing support as an alternative or complementary approach to professional grief counseling and therapy and to medical management. U.S. social worker Phyllis R. Silverman started the Widow-to-Widow Program in 1964; it is thought to be the first of its kind and has served as a model for many subsequent organizations.