First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.)

Grief Support and Bereavement Servicesfirsthourgrief.org

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) is a Louisville, KY-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing faith-informed grief mentoring, support groups, youth programs, and educational workshops to individuals experiencing sudden loss of a loved one.

Company typePrivate
Founded-
HeadquartersLouisville, United States
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2C
OfferingServices

What First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) does

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that provides faith-informed grief mentoring, counseling, and support services to individuals experiencing sudden loss of a loved one. The organization operates from two Louisville offices (Linn Station Road and St. Andrews Church Road) and serves a Louisville metro area client base of over 1,300 grieving people across 72 zip codes. Its service portfolio centers on one-to-one grief mentoring and coaching sessions, monthly community support groups, youth-specific grief programs, and speaker/workshop presentations delivered to workplaces, schools, and community organizations.

The core product is human-delivered grief support rather than a technology platform. Sessions are 60-90 minutes in length; the first visit is free and serves as an assessment, with subsequent weekly sessions priced at $50 for mentors and $75 for coaches. The organization explicitly states no one is turned away based on ability to pay, indicating a sliding scale or pro-bono posture. Supporting services include educational blog content, curated resource referrals to legal, financial, funeral, and clergy professionals, and faith-based community connections through partner organizations such as Southeast Christian Church.

FHGR's business model is a hybrid of modest session fees and donor-dependent charitable contributions. The organization has earned the Candid Platinum Seal of Transparency (2026), a credential held by fewer than 1% of US nonprofits, and operates with a small team of 1-10 employees. Strategic operational support has been provided through pro-bono or reduced-cost partnerships with current 360 (marketing), Prospect Treasures (furnishings), Reed Weitkamp Schell & Vice PLLC (legal/501(c)(3) status), Yazatel (telecommunications), and Baldwin CPA's (accounting). The organization is led by co-founder Lisa Schardein, who built the program from her own experience of losing a son.

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) firmographics

Firmographics

Name: First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.)
Legal name: First Hour Grief Recovery, Inc.
Website: https://firsthourgrief.org
Company type: Private
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Short description: First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) is a Louisville, KY-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing faith-informed grief mentoring, support groups, youth programs, and educational workshops to individuals experiencing sudden loss of a loved one.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) industry classification

Industry

Product category: Grief Support and Bereavement Services
NAICS: Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)
SIC: Services-Educational Services (8200)
akta.pro primary industry: Bereavement & Grief Support Services (Hospice-Affiliated/Independent) (HLADAHAL)

Keywords

Grief support services
Bereavement counseling
Peer support groups
Faith-based mentoring
Community presentations

Where First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Louisville
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, FHGR relies on donations from supporters and the community to fund operations.
Session Fees: Modest session fees of $50 per visit (mentors) or $75 per session (coaches) after the free initial visit. No one is turned away based on ability to pay.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Freemium	One-time	Free Initial Visit
Subscription	Weekly	Standard Mentoring Sessions
Subscription	Weekly	Coaching Sessions

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) product offering

Product offering

Core offering

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR) provides faith-informed, one-to-one grief mentoring and coaching, peer grief support groups, and youth grief programs to individuals and families coping with the sudden loss of a loved one. The first session is free; subsequent weekly visits are $50 for mentors and $75 for coaches, with no one turned away based on ability to pay. Complementary offerings include workplace/school speaker presentations and referrals to funeral, legal, financial, and clergy resources, all delivered from two Louisville, Kentucky office locations.

Product overview

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) offers a suite of grief support services centered around their core one-to-one mentoring and group support programs. The organization provides free initial grief coaching sessions followed by affordable weekly sessions ($50/visit). Their services are organized by type of loss (child, spouse, parent, friend, suicide) and include youth-specific programming, community education through speaker services, and an extensive resource library connecting clients to legal, financial, funeral, and spiritual support services. The organization operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving the Louisville, KY metropolitan area.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Grief Mentoring/Coaching Services

Companies that use First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.)

Customer profile

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

Current 360coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWebsite rebuild, marketing materials, and media support. Current 360 helped strengthen the FHGR brand through generous design and marketing assistance.
Prospect TreasuressupportingOthersDonated most of the furnishings for FHGR office space, creating a beautiful, welcoming, and comfortable environment for providing hope and healing.
Reed Weitkamp Schell & Vice PLLCsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal advice and assistance in achieving 501(c)(3) non-profit status. Attorney Ivan Schell and staff provided pro-bono legal guidance.
YazatelsupportingOthersProvided phone service at a significantly reduced cost for the nonprofit organization.
Baldwin CPA'ssupportingOthersContinued support from Chris Hatcher and Barb Lasky for accounting and financial matters.
Southeast Christian ChurchsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerConnecting people to Jesus and one another. FHGR is located within or associated with the Southeast Christian Church community.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

GriefShare: National faith-based grief support program offering support groups and resources across many loss types. Highly comparable to FHGR's faith-informed, group-based, multi-loss-type model.
Dougy Center: National nonprofit providing peer grief support groups, including dedicated programs for children and teens. Directly comparable to FHGR's youth programming and group model.
The Compassionate Friends: Nonprofit offering peer support for families grieving the death of a child. Closely comparable niche to FHGR's "Loss of a Child" program and family-focused mission.

Broad incumbents

BetterHelp: Large online counseling platform serving individuals seeking licensed therapy, including for grief and loss. Comparable end-customer (grieving individuals) but delivers credentialed, virtual care at scale versus FHGR's in-person mentor model.
VITAS Healthcare: Large US hospice provider that also offers bereavement support programs for families. Comparable via bereavement services, though embedded in a much broader clinical hospice business.
Alive (formerly Alive Hospice): Regional hospice and palliative care nonprofit providing grief counseling, support groups, and community education. Comparable via bereavement programming alongside a broader care continuum.

Emerging players

What's Your Grief: Online grief education platform with courses, blog content, and resources for grievers and professionals. Comparable to FHGR's content/resource mission but delivered digitally rather than in-person.
Refuge in Grief: Online grief support community and counseling practice offering group programs, courses, and individual support for sudden loss. Directly comparable in niche and tone to FHGR.

Others

Southeast Christian Church (Counseling Ministry): FHGR's named strategic partner and host community; church counseling ministries offer adjacent faith-based grief and counseling support, making them a close operational neighbor rather than direct competitor.

Regional players

Hope for Bereaved (now merged/regional variants): Regional nonprofit grief support networks offering support groups and peer-based programming in defined US markets. Comparable to FHGR's community-led, in-person, faith-informed regional model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance2 records

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.)

What does First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) do?

Is First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) a public or private company?

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.

When was First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) founded?

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) was founded in -1. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) based?

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) is headquartered in Louisville, United States, in the North America region.

How does First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) make money?

Two revenue lines are on record. Donations and Charitable Contributions are the primary driver. The others are session Fees.

Who are First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.)'s main competitors?

Direct peers on record are GriefShare, Dougy Center and The Compassionate Friends. Broad incumbents are BetterHelp, VITAS Healthcare and Alive (formerly Alive Hospice). Emerging players are What's Your Grief and Refuge in Grief. Southeast Christian Church (Counseling Ministry) is listed as an others. Hope for Bereaved (now merged/regional variants) is listed as a regional player.

Does First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) have an API?

No public API is recorded for First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.).

What industry is First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.) in?

First Hour Grief Response (FHGR, Inc.)'s product category is Grief Support and Bereavement Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLADAHAL, Bereavement & Grief Support Services (Hospice-Affiliated/Independent). Its NAICS code is 624190 and its SIC code is 8200.