Stolpersteine ​​in Stralsund: Commemoration of Jewish life full of emotions

Stolpersteine ​​in Stralsund: Commemoration of Jewish life full of emotions

On July 9, 2025, five new stumbling blocks were laid in Stralsund, a moving event under the motto “Commemoration of Jewish Life”. The Initiative to Remember Jewish Life in Stralsund and the Hanseatic City of Stralsund organized the event, which was opened by Mayor Alexander Badrow. Numerous descendants of the victims from England and southern Germany were present at the ceremony, symbolizing their connection to the deceased in a touching way.

The contribution of the students from the Hansa-Gymnasium, who read from the biographies of the five honored women, was particularly impressive. They include Holocaust survivor Berta Wilton and Franziska Born, who was murdered in Auschwitz. The new stumbling blocks were integrated into the sidewalk at four different locations in Stralsund. The total number of Stolpersteine ​​in the city rises to 88 and helps to keep alive the memory of those persecuted and disenfranchised during National Socialism.

Stumbling blocks as a memorial

The Stolpersteine ​​are part of the project by the artist Gunter Demnig, who has been anchoring the names of Nazi victims in the places where they lived for 30 years. These small paving stones are not only memorials, but also a call against forgetting. The inscriptions on the stones contain information such as names, years of birth and deportation as well as details of fate. Demnig considers his work to be the “largest decentralized work of art in the world,” designed to give the victims back their names and show that they were part of the community. There are currently over 1,200 stumbling blocks in Germany and 31 other European countries.

This new installation not only ensures continuity in commemoration, but is also supported by modern technology. As part of the event, the StolpersteinApp was presented, which was developed by DATAPORT in collaboration with the State Center for Civic Education in Schwerin and the Initiative for Jewish Life in Stralsund. This app allows users to access information about the biographies of the people for whom the Stolpersteine ​​were laid and to light digital memorial candles. The basis of the app is the website “Gedenkbuch-Stralsund.de”. Users can easily access the app via a QR code or at kultur.dataport.de/stolpersteine/ download.

A look at the honored women

• Berta Wilton, geb. Steinfeld, *23.01.1912, Überlebende, Flucht nach England 1939.
• Rosa Steinfeld, *02.05.1910, deportiert am 12.02.1940 nach Piaski, ermordet 1940.
• Frieda Jensen, geb. Räsener, *03.12.1884, deportiert am 05.12.1941 nach Riga, ermordet.
• Flora Barthel, geb. Abrahamsohn, *27.01.1890, deportiert am 05.01.1944 nach Ghetto Theresienstadt, Überlebende.
• Franziska Born, geb. Heine, *03.04.1871, deportiert am 18.05.1943 nach Ghetto Theresienstadt, ermordet am 19.05.1944 in Auschwitz.

The Stolpersteine ​​are not just places of remembrance, they are part of a living remembrance that transcends generational boundaries. As visitors linger at the new stones, emotions such as sadness and respect can be felt - a reminder that will endure in the years to come. The initiative and technology connect past and present so that the stories of Berta Wilton and Co. are not forgotten.

Further information about this important culture of remembrance and the stumbling blocks in Stralsund can be found on the websites of Stralsund, NDR and Deutschland.de.