Planning A Beautiful Service

Memorializing A Loved One Through Their Obituary

4 June 2015

Cherly Fox

If you are tasked with writing an obituary for a recently passed loved one, consider it an honor. You have the opportunity to pen the final words that might be written about the person. Take this opportunity to summarize this special person's life for current and future generations. Funeral homes can offer tips and resources, but the writing is up to you. Here some things to consider as you start creating this important memorial.

Make It More Than Just an Announcement

Some people think of an obituary as an announcement of someone's death. The announcement and obituary are separate things. The announcement informs people of a death. The obituary is focused on the person's life. Talk about the person's successes and achievements, their passions and hobbies, what motivated them to live the life they did. Mention the friends and family and any others who influenced the person's life. This might be the only time something was written about this person.

Be Sure It's Accurate

Of course, proofread and use a spell-checker on the work, but fact check dates and events, too. Getting a birth date, a child's middle name or the military rank of the person wrong in the obituary is embarrassing. People will read this at the viewing or visitation and it will be posted at the service. People who know the deceased and complete strangers will read this. Get the details right to properly tell the story of this person.

Express Gratitude in the Obituary

This is also a way that you can say "thank you" from the deceased to friends, family and the community. Single out important people in the person's life to say how much they appreciated their help, trust and friendship. This can help people have some closure to hear that they were thought of highly and made a difference in the person's life. If this was a sudden passing, the person may not have had the opportunity to thank those people, so you can be the bearer of those words to them.

You Are Creating Lasting Words

People will take the obituary home with them and store it in a safe place. They will bring it out on special occasions, on the person's birthday and on the anniversary of the death and reread the words you wrote. As you craft the obituary, keep in mind that future generations of people will read those words and learn something about a person they could not have met. Make those words a fitting memorial for the person that will last into the future. Contact a funeral home like W J Smith & Son Funeral Home for more information.

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