Mourning and farewell: Chemnitz event series on life and death

Mourning and farewell: Chemnitz event series on life and death

A special series of events will soon start in Chemnitz that will deal intensively with the topic of grief and farewell. Under the title “Death is part of life”, the Chemnitz adult education center, together with the Chemnitz Evangelical Forum, is fighting against the taboo surrounding the end of life. The period of the events is from November 5th to November 21st, 2025 and will take place at TIETZ, Moritzstraße 20. Here, personal experiences are reported and how to deal with losses are discussed in a friendly atmosphere. In total, the series offers five courses and lectures that are dedicated to different aspects of grief, as Chemnitz.de reports.

The range of topics ranges from dementia-friendly funerals to organizational steps when a bereavement occurs to new types of funerals. The support of mourners will be particularly sensitively addressed, and there will also be a poetic-musical approach to the topic. Participation in the events is free for most courses, only one event charges a small participation fee of 12.80 euros.

Dates and topics

Here is an overview of the events:

• Demenzfreundliche Bestattung – Mittwoch, 5. November, 19 bis 20.30 Uhr, kostenfrei
• Wenn der Trauerfall eintritt – Was ist zu tun? – Donnerstag, 13. November, 18 bis 19.30 Uhr, kostenfrei
• Bestattungsformen im Wandel – Dienstag, 18. November, 19 bis 20.30 Uhr, kostenfrei
• Trauernde einfühlsam begleiten – ein Gespräch – Donnerstag, 20. November, 18 bis 19.30 Uhr, 12,80 Euro
• „Dem Leben auf der Spur“ – Gedanken zu Tod und Sterben – Freitag, 21. November, 19 bis 20.30 Uhr, kostenfrei

Registration is possible via the adult education center website or by telephone on 0371 488 4343.

Grief in dementia

The topic of grief is particularly complex when it comes to people with dementia. The question often arises: How do you help a person with dementia feel and process grief? According to trauerundgedenken.de, relatives do not find it easy to deliver news of death. Dementia sufferers' reactions can vary greatly, as they often have difficulty distinguishing between present and past losses.

In the early stages of dementia, grieving people may still show usual reactions, while as the disease progresses, memory decreases and confusion occurs. Relatives are often frustrated when people repeatedly ask about deceased people. It is crucial here to make the grieving process visible and tangible, also through the use of memory aids such as photos or familiar music.

Emotional challenges for relatives

As Anja Schmidt-Ott, grief counselor and coach, explains in her article on alzheimerundwir.com, grief in dementia is often an “invisible grief”. Relatives experience a variety of emotions, ranging from sadness to anger, whereby the changes in the relationship with the person with dementia are also mourned. It is common for these feelings not to be dealt with directly, which can result in constant “functioning.”

The good news is: There is no set way to deal with grief. An exchange with other affected people can help enormously. Schmidt-Ott is even planning a grief group that will support relatives of dementia patients in order to create space for grief and understanding. Grief is a part of life and it is important to give it space so that we can approach the issue of loss more empathetically.