Writing a thoughtful, heartfelt obituary is a tremendous tribute to the loved one who passed away. It can be a daunting process, but these tips can help you structure the obituary and provide an outline to make writing it easier.
Announcement
Start by making an official announcement of death. This may only need to be one sentence. Provide the full name including first, middle, maiden and last names as well as suffixes such as Jr. or Sr. Then list the place of residency, person’s age and date of death. You can also include the manner of death, if appropriate, or provide a simple description as “passed away peacefully.”
Biography
Next, list out some of the biographical highlights of the person’s life such as birth date, where he or she grew up, received an education and type of work or career. Some events and achievements that you may want to mention may be hometown, former places of residency, education and degrees earned, employment and positions held, military service, and church or community involvement.
Personal Highlights
In this section, try to capture the essence of the person and his or his life. Focus on hobbies, likes and things he or she was passionate about. Describe all the good characteristics that made this person special, loved and unique.
Family
Write a general overview of the person’s family starting with the ones who passed away prior to the deceased then moving on to those who have survived him or her. Close family can be listed by name, and large groups of classes can be listed more generally. The proper etiquette is to start with immediate family members – spouse, children, parents, grandchildren and siblings. Grandchildren, cousins, nieces and nephews are typically not named but listed numerically. It is best to also try to include sons-in-law and daughters-in-law.
Example: Grace was preceded in death by her parents, Robert and Louise Taylor. She is survived by her husband, Thomas, and their three children Elizabeth (husband Bruce), Thomas, Jr. (wife Bess) and Mary Grace (husband Rick). Grace is also survived by her 7 grandchildren.
Funeral Information
Provide the date, time and location of the funeral services, as well as burial information. State whether the services are open to anyone to attend or private to family and invited guests only. Also include preferences for flowers, donations and condolences.
Once you write the entire obituary, you may then reduce one version down to a simple version for newspaper print since you often have to pay by the line. The longer form can then be published online and distributed via social media for free.
Many of the funeral home attendants will assist you in writing the obituary and publishing it. For more information on estate administration/probate, contact the attorneys at Stouffer Legal in the Greater Baltimore area. They can assist you in all the legal matters that present themselves after the death of a loved one. You can schedule an appointment by calling us at (443) 470-3599 or emailing us at office@stoufferlegal.com.
