Star garden
No event hits parents harder or more unexpectedly than losing a child before it's even born.
Mothers and fathers who were planning a "new" life are left behind and are now forced to say goodbye unexpectedly and painfully.
To offer these parents at least a little support, the Star Garden has been in existence at Mainz Main Cemetery for 20 years now.
Ein Sternengarten, ...
... in dem Tränen, Trauer, Wut und andere Gefühle ihren Raum haben.
... in dem die Erinnerung nahe sein und der Blick in die Zukunft wandern kann.
... in dem ich spüre, ich bin nicht allein.
Twice a year, a joint burial ceremony for the children takes
place in this very special burial ground. Star-shaped nameplates can be attached to a communal gravestone.
As a sign of remembrance, but also as a memento if the bereavement is not connected with a current burial.
Parents and relatives are invited to organize the funeral service for the children together with pastors from the Protestant and Catholic churches.
Following the funeral service and burial, there will be an opportunity to meet, exchange thoughts, and offer comfort, accompanied by the association Trauernde Eltern & Kinder Rhein-Main e. V. (Grieving Parents & Children Rhine-Main).
In addition, other institutions are also involved in the Sternengarten.
The members of the cemetery association have covered the costs of landscaping and the construction of the tomb.
The site was provided and designed by the Mainz municipal utility company.
And the urns and coffins required for the respective burials are donated by the Mainz funeral home "Rech." (opens in a new tab)" (opens in a new tab)
"Sterne, die nie verblassen"
Der Ausdruck Sternengarten orientiert sich an einer Passage aus dem Kinderbuch
„Der kleine Prinz" von Antoine de Saint Exupéry, in dem es heißt:
„Wenn du bei Nacht den Himmel anschaust, wird es dir sein,
als lachten alle Sterne, weil ich auf einem von ihnen wohne,
weil ich auf einem von ihnen lache.
Du allein wirst Sterne haben, die lachen können". Und er lachte wieder.
„Und wenn du dich getröstet hast (man tröstet immer),
wirst du froh sein, mich gekannt zu haben.
Du wirst mein Freund sein. Du wirst Lust haben, mit mir zu lachen ..."
Star garden
Children's communal grave site "Sternengarten"
Free joint urn or earth burial for children who died before they could be born and are not subject to burial requirements. Burials take place twice a year, usually on the first Thursday in March and September at 2:30 p.m.
The next burial will take place on March 5, 2026, at 2:30 p.m. Parents are invited to organize the funeral service for their children with the pastoral care team at Mainz hospitals.
Contact person
Location: Mainz Main Cemetery, Untere Zahlbacher Straße
Contact
Chaplaincy of Mainz Hospitals
Phone: (06131) 1772-19 or -20 or (06131) 57 50
Email: evang.klinikpfarramt.mainzunimedizin-mainzde
kath.klinikpfarramtseelsorge.unimedizin-mainzde
... Grieving Parents & Children Rhein-Main e.V.
Phone: (06131) 61 72 658
Email: kontakteltern-kinder-trauerde
... Mainz
Cemetery Administration
Telephone: (0 61 31) 97 15 0
Email: wirtschaftsbetrieb.mainzstadt.mainzde
... Hospital Chaplaincy of the GPR Clinic Rüsselsheim
Telephone: (06142) 88 12 72 or 88 19 00