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Healing happens together

We are a peer-run organization dedicated to community building and systems change. We recognize the enormity of the work ahead, which is why our four core programs are not just about recovery, they are designed to reimagine mental health altogether. We support those most impacted to lead, not only in their own healing but as the architects of a more just and thriving society.

A father and older son of hispanic decent embrace
Learn more about our mission and approach

Healing happens together

We are a peer-run organization dedicated to community building and systems change. We recognize the enormity of the work ahead, which is why our four core programs are not just about recovery, they are designed to reimagine mental health altogether. We support those most impacted to lead, not only in their own healing but as the architects of a more just and thriving society.

Learn more about our mission and approach

Upcoming Zoom Groups

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Find the support you need, in the way that you need it

Mobile Peer Respite

What is Mobile Peer Respite? Our Mobile Peer Respite team comes to you, whether that’s your home, a park, or a coffee shop to offer trauma-informed, non-clinical peer support.

Request Mobile Respite Outreach

Peer-run respite

What is Peer Respite? Our Peer-Run Respites are a short-term crisis alternative to hospitalization. Each of our Respites offer a 24/7 welcoming home-like environment for rest and reflection. 

Request Respite

How we support

We believe relationships are at the center of trauma healing and recovery. No one has faced the exact challenges you’re experiencing, which is why Kiva Centers rejects a one-size-fits-all approach to healing. While everyone’s life experience is unique, we believe that peer relationships are at the center of trauma healing and recovery. At Kiva, you’ll connect with individuals who have lived experience similar, and often relatable to your own.

Who do we support? We support Individuals who come to Kiva through personal choice and self-determination that are 18 and above. Individuals who are seeking peer support come to Kiva through our Recovery Learning Community locations, Peer-Run Respite Programs as well as our daily peer support meetings and other activities.

Mental health
Trauma
LGBTQIA+
Suicide
Grief
Substance misuse
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Here are some of the areas in which Kiva is proud to offer support

Kiva Centers achieves its mission through four core areas that work together to address well-being and recognize cycles that may cause distress. Each program supports a different part of the healing journey—from immediate crisis support, to long-term community connection to training the peer workforce and technical assistance to guide other organizations toward trauma-informed change. Together, these efforts create an ecosystem where we address root causes and build sustainable change.

Peer-run Respite

Kiva operates three 24/7 peer-run respites that provide safe, home-like alternatives to psychiatric hospitalization where people can find rest, dignity, and understanding during times of mental health distress or crisis. Staffed entirely by people with lived experience, our team offers compassionate, trauma-informed support that meets each person where they are and walks beside them toward stability and hope. For those who cannot come to us, our mobile respite brings the same care and connection directly to their home.

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Recovery Learning Communities

Kiva builds healing communities that provide long-term support through our Recovery Learning Communities, where people come together to share their stories, uplift one another, and grow as leaders. Members transform their struggles into strength, creating meaningful opportunities to remind others they are never alone. We cultivate joy through art, music, and connection, while also holding space for the hardest parts of healing with groups that address suicide, self-harm, grief, trauma, and surviving injustice.

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Laverne teaching

Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) Training & Workforce Development

Kiva Centers is the state certification body for Certified Peer Specialists in Massachusetts, training people to use their lived experience to support others in recovery. Our rigorous program and continuing education in trauma, equity, and Indigenous healing help build a skilled, compassionate peer workforce grounded in integrity and hope and ready to lead in advocacy and systems change.

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Technical Assistance

Kiva Centers provides technical assistance to organizations nationwide, advancing peer-run solutions and health equity. From building trauma-informed systems to strengthening peer-led programs, we equip partners with the tools, training, and lived-experience expertise needed to create lasting, equitable change.

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Peer support

Find a supportive space where your emotions and identity are validated. Our peer-run groups provide connection, understanding, and a pathway to self-healing.

Training

Gain the skills and knowledge to create trauma-informed, peer-run systems that support individuals and communities.

Advocacy

Find your voice and make an impact. We provide training and platforms to help you advocate for the causes that matter most to you, alongside a community that shares your passion.

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Certified training programs

Kiva Centers offers training programs and materials to develop trauma-informed and peer-run supports for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

View Training Programs

About Kiva Centers

Too often, individuals facing mental health challenges, addiction, and trauma feel isolated and disempowered by traditional care systems. Kiva Centers exists to change that. As a peer-led organization, we provide safe, inclusive spaces where healing happens through connection and trauma-informed support. Rooted in lived experience, our model fosters trust, authenticity, and sustainable healing, ensuring that every individual is met with dignity and respect. When you choose peer support, we collaborate with you where you are at, and you continue to drive the direction for your recovery.

The word “Kiva” originates from Puebloan traditions in the American Southwest, including Hopi, Zuni and Taos communities. A kiva is a round, underground ceremonial structure made from the earth used for spiritual practices, healing rituals, teaching, and community decision-making. Traditionally, kivas serve as spaces where people gather to connect with ancestral knowledge, engage in sacred ceremonies, and strengthen communal bonds. As an Indigenous-led organization, Kiva Centers collaborates with Indigenous communities while offering services that are open to all. We recognize that trauma can cause people to shrink their worldview and only trust those with shared identities or experiences; our approach instead creates relational, intergenerational, and cross-cultural partnerships that honor the belief that each person is the expert in their own healing. Just as traditional kivas served as sacred spaces for community gathering, ceremony, and renewal, Kiva Centers creates intentional environments where individuals can reconnect with their inner strength, reclaim well-being, and contribute to community.

View our Guiding Principles

Mission Statement

Kiva Centers is a nationally recognized non-profit advancing trauma-informed, peer-led solutions that move beyond crisis response to lasting change. As an entirely peer-run organization, our vision will be realized when people most impacted by trauma, mental health, and substance use challenges no longer face isolation, but belong to thriving communities and in leadership roles; when our voices shape policy at every level; and when the systems that once excluded us operate equitably and accountably.