The Sant Cugat Cemetery hosts the first memorial in Vallès dedicated to perinatal grief

Sant Cugat del Vallès, October 2019.— The Sant Cugat Cemetery has created the first memorial in the Vallès dedicated to gestational or perinatal loss. The aim of the new space is to address the emotional needs of individuals who have experienced such losses, providing a physical reference point to honor and remember the lost child. GIC de Nomber, the Àltima group company managing the Sant Cugat Cemetery, has been responsible for bringing the project to fruition, which was driven by the Anhel association and in collaboration with the Sant Cugat City Council. The memorial will be officially inaugurated on October 30 at 11:00 AM, with the presence of José Gallardo, Councilor for Urban Services, Mobility, and Transport of the Sant Cugat City Council; Guida Rubio and Marta Cabasa from Anhel; and Joan Ventura from Àltima.

The chosen location for remembering lost children during the gestational or perinatal phase is situated in the heart of the Sant Cugat Cemetery, a few meters from the chapel, surrounded by the nature that characterizes the site. It consists of a plot enclosed with pine wood sleepers and features a large natural stone monolith, resembling a funeral stele, engraved with the inscription: “To you and all the babies who left us too soon.” On the ground of the space, covered with gray natural gravel, families can place small stars in tribute to their child. This element, made from aggregates, will be handcrafted for each family that requests it and will allow the option to include the baby’s ashes and engrave their name. According to José Gallardo, Councilor for Urban Services, Mobility, and Transport of the Sant Cugat City Council, “Having the first memorial of the Vallès for families experiencing such a loss at our cemetery shows our city’s commitment to normalizing a still very invisible grief. Gestures like this are necessary to move towards a more emotionally mature society.”

The realization of this memorial at the Sant Cugat Cemetery, the first one implemented by GIC de Nomber in its managed facilities, “once again demonstrates our commitment to constantly adapting to society’s needs, which are evolving ever more rapidly. In this sense, our goal is to work towards making cemeteries spaces that keep up and evolve at the same pace as people,” argues Joan Ventura, General Director of Àltima Cemeteries. He adds, “It was essential to respond to this demand from the cemetery. Therefore, we believe that having a specific physical point, especially designed for this type of grief, will help families manage their emotions following the loss of a child at a premature age.”

The initiative to host a memorial for gestational or perinatal loss in Sant Cugat came from the Anhel association, which has been active in the Vallès for two years and works to support families who have suffered the death of a child before birth or shortly after. “This type of grief still represents a significant taboo in our society. With this new project at the Sant Cugat Cemetery, the first in the Vallès, we aim to take a further step towards contributing to the visibility and normalization of a grief that is real, that exists, and that affects many families today. This memorial seeks, above all, to pay tribute to these children who died too soon, deeply loved, and also aims to be the reference point where they can be remembered,” notes Guida Rubio, President of Anhel. The organization, which brings together around thirty families, will hold an open event for anyone interested in learning about this new memorial on November 16 at 11:00 AM.

The Sant Cugat Cemetery is a municipal facility that, in addition to the new Anhel memorial, houses over 5,500 burials, including niches, graves, mausoleums, and cremation columbariums.