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MILLSTADT, Ill. 鈥� It was a late Friday afternoon when a team of men approached a tiny pink casket. One wiped his brow. Another stepped away to smoke a cigarette. Then, with calloused hands, they gently lowered the child鈥檚 body into the ground.

Earlier that day, the groundskeepers at Sunset Gardens of Memory had dug the small grave up on a hill in a special section of this cemetery in a southern Illinois community across the river from St. Louis. It was for a 3-year-old girl killed by a stray bullet.

鈥淚t can be stressful sometimes,鈥� Jasper Belt, 26, said. 鈥淲e have to use little shovels.鈥�

More than 30 years ago, Johnnie Haire and the other groundskeepers built a garden site just for children, separate from unlabeled sections of the 30-acre cemetery where they used to bury infants. They added a birdbath and bought angel figurines, carefully painting each one a hue of brown. Haire wanted the angels to be Black, like many of the children laid to rest here.

鈥淭his is 鈥楤aby Land,鈥欌�� said Haire, 67, Sunset Gardens鈥� grounds supervisor, as he gestured across the area. 鈥淭his is where a lot of babies are buried.鈥�

Cemeteries like this one have long honored those who die too young. Such special burial sites exist in ; ; ; and beyond. They are for stillborn children and those who died of disease or accidents.

Today, a modern epidemic fills more graves than anything else: In the U.S., firearm-related injuries were the leading cause of death for children in 2020, ahead of motor vehicle crashes, according to .

The men at Sunset Gardens are collecting data in their own way, too.

In 2019, Haire broke ground on a new section of the cemetery where teenagers and young adults are buried, including those killed by covid-19 and many who were victims of gun violence. It鈥檚 called the 鈥淕arden of Grace.鈥� It鈥檚 already been used more than anyone would like.

鈥淥ne time, it was just every weekend. Just a steady flow,鈥� Haire said. 鈥淭his one getting killed over here. This one getting killed over there. They fighting against each other, some rival gangs or whatever they were. So we had a lot. A lot of that.鈥�

And 2021 was especially deadly nationwide: More than , the highest U.S. toll since the early 1990s, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This wasn鈥檛 as deadly nationally, though the tally is still being finalized.

The groundskeepers at Sunset Gardens have learned to watch their step in Baby Land because grieving parents drop off toys, candy, and balloons for their deceased children. 鈥淭hey just do things so differently in grief,鈥� said Jocelyn Belt, 35, whose dad, William Belt Sr., 66, has worked at the cemetery since before she was born. Her brother and cousin work there, too.

The groundskeepers work quietly as families grieve. William Belt Jr., 44, said he doesn鈥檛 pry, even if he knows the family and would like to know how they鈥檙e doing.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 what you learn not to do,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e let them come to us.鈥�

But often, the men said, they are anonymous amid the rituals of grief. William Belt Jr. said he sometimes runs into those who attended the burials around town. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 know my name. They鈥檒l be like, 鈥楪ravedigger, you buried my mom. Man, thanks.鈥� 鈥�

These men understand the complicated pain of losing loved ones. In the past year alone, the Belt family has experienced three deaths, including who was shot and killed.

And on New Year鈥檚 Eve, William Belt Jr. himself was shot while in his truck outside a gas station convenience store.

鈥淣obody鈥檚 exempt,鈥� he said, while recovering at home. 鈥淚t could have been an old lady going to get some cornmeal or something like that from that store and could have got caught right in the crossfire.鈥�

His family is thankful he鈥檚 OK. He is still grappling with his own close call, though.

鈥淚 would have probably been overtime for some of my co-workers. That鈥檚 something to think about,鈥� Belt said. 鈥淎nd then they wouldn鈥檛 been able to go to my funeral 鈥檆ause they got to bury me.鈥�

William Belt Sr. said his body froze when his son was shot. And he said he couldn鈥檛 hold back his emotions when he buried his brother and niece less than a month apart. Many of their relatives are buried at Sunset Gardens 鈥� literally by them.

鈥淚 weep,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ig difference between crying and weeping. Weeping, I鈥檓 closer to God.鈥�

Their job is physical, emotional work done in all seasons, all weather. Injuries occur. Heartbreak is everywhere.

To hold their own hearts together, the groundskeepers often decompress as they eat lunch in a shed near the cemetery鈥檚 front office, trading stories in front of a wood-burning stove to keep warm during winter. They find joy where they can. The Belts like to fish. And the senior Belt occasionally sings the blues to soothe his soul. Parker, a long-haired cat, provides them company, too 鈥� and enjoys investigating the men鈥檚 lunches.

And they laugh when they can. William Belt Sr. still remembers his first year on the job. He wanted to be respectful, he said with a smile, even though his clients were deceased.

鈥� 鈥楨xcuse me, coming through,鈥� 鈥� Belt recalled saying as he walked through the cemetery. 鈥淭hen I got myself together.鈥�

Digging graves for a living wasn鈥檛 on the career list for Belt or his friend Haire. But that鈥檚 exactly what the two men have done for some 43 years 鈥� whether it鈥檚 for those who lived long, full lives or those whose young lives were cut short. They鈥檙e caretakers.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 the proper name for it,鈥� Haire said.

As he stood amid the graves on a recent day, he noted that the wooden Baby Land sign that welcomes mourners is worn. The paint on the angels is peeling, too.

鈥淚t needs touching up over there,鈥� Haire said. 鈥淏ut I鈥檝e been busy.鈥�

(Kaiser Health News) is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is one of the three major operating programs at (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit organization providing information on health issues to the nation. to KHN’s free Morning Briefing.

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