Star singers from Rottum are committed to children’s rights!

On January 8, 2025, District Administrator Mario Glaser welcomed ten star singers from the small town of Rottum at the district office. In the first days of January, around 1,000 children and young people were deployed to draw attention to important issues. This year's motto for the star singer campaign was: “Raise your voice! – star singing for children's rights”.

In particular, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child was discussed, which was proclaimed in 1989 and has also been valid in Germany since 1992. 14-year-old Emma recalled that children's rights have only existed for 36 years and that in some countries compliance with this convention is still inadequate. Examples of children's rights mentioned include education, healthy eating and leisure.

Commitment to children's rights

Andreas Hund from the district youth department reported on the situation of children's rights in countries such as Kenya and Colombia, where they are also in danger. District Administrator Glaser emphasized the importance of donations for children's projects worldwide and thanked the Rottum group and those accompanying them with a donation and small gifts.

Dean's officer Robert Gerner described the visit to the district office as an annual highlight for the star singers, who were accompanied by deputy dean Martin Dörflinger and Pastor Michael Schönball. During the campaign, the St. Mauritius parish visited all households in the 380-inhabitant town of Rottum. On Epiphany, 17 boys and girls marched through the town in four groups and reported on friendly encounters and donations that they had received at many houses. They placed the blessing “Christus mansionem benedicat” in various places in the district office. District Administrator Glaser also emphasized the importance of the blessing for communication between employees and citizens.

In addition, teaching materials for the Star Singer Campaign 2025 that focus on the rights of children are already available. These materials are closely linked to the film “Willi and Children's Rights” and address the situation of children in three places: Turkana in Kenya, Bogotá in Colombia and in a children's rights school in Germany. The materials offer in-depth background information as well as worksheets and are aimed at teaching grades 3 to 7 of all types of schools. Further information and the option to download the teaching materials as PDFs can be found on the Sternsinger website.