Kindergraves memorial service, Saturday

The annual Kindergraves memorial ceremony takes place Saturday at the Kaiserslautern Main Cemetery (Waldfriedhof). The Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps Color Guard leads the procession 10 a.m. from Daenner Chapel to the gravesites.

***image1***Small sandstone grave markers lay horizontal to the ground, hardly visible to those walking past on the sandy walkway.  The names engraved on the markers identify the 451 American children who died long ago in the U.S. Forces Kindergraves − the children’s final resting place.

From 1952 to 1971, American infants who died at the American military hospital at Landstuhl or at nearby civilian hospitals, were buried in the Kaiserslautern cemetery. Most were six months old or younger and died as a result of birth complications or incurable disease. Transportation for a stateside burial was not available.

For more than three decades, the Kindergraves were scattered throughout different areas of the cemetery. Initially, German and American women cared for the gravesites. In 1986, the Ramstein Area Chief’s Group joined with the German American and International Women’s Club in forming the Kaiserslautern Kindergraves Memorial Foundation. The foundation worked with community leaders to consolidate the children’s graves to one centralized location. The Ramstein Chief’s Group volunteered as the official agent in leasing the land where the “U. S. Force’s Kinder” monument now stands.
 
The purpose of the KKMF is to preserve a respectful and eternal resting place for the children. The foundation maintains open communications with families, preserves historical archives, conducts ceremonies, and provides oversight to site maintenance. 

While the Kindergraves look as if they receive tender loving care from their families, most of the families returned to America many decades ago. The care and upkeep of the site is performed by American and German volunteers − cutting the grass, raking leaves, cleaning grave markers and tending to the flowers. Private donations fund the maintenance activities. 

Each spring, on the Saturday following Mother’s Day, the RACG and GAIWC conduct the Kindergraves memorial ceremony. For more information regarding the memorial or the history of the Kaiserslautern Kindergraves Memorial Foundation contact Terence DeLay at american_kinder@yahoo.com or visit the temporary Web site at http://kindergraves.delayineurope.com.