Writing an Obituary
An obituary is usually written in paragraph form and summarizes the life of the deceased in chronological order. In most situations your Funeral Director will assist you in the writing of it, however if you want to write it, then by all means do so. An obituary becomes many things under one banner. It includes a death notice, a brief summary of a life, a record of family, information about a funeral service, a request for memorial donations, sometimes even a thank you to those who helped the deceased in their time preceding the death. Once you have finished your obituary, you will ned to have the funeral director involved place it for you.
Accuracy is so important. It is very easy to make an omission or error. Names can be misspelled, dates can be incorrect, information can be missed. It is so essential that maximum accuracy is upheld and thorough proof-reading is carried out. The following guide and templates provided will assist you with this.
Guide
- It is essential to determine the length of the obituary!
- What do you want to say?
- Who do you want to tell?
- Is the Obituary being placed online or in a newspaper?
- If it is to be placed in a newspaper, will that version be abbreviated?
- Provide the deceased's full name and date and place of death.
- Give a brief recapitulation of the main events in the person's life, commencing with his or her birth and birthplace.
- Be sure to indentify the schools, colleges and university attended, and any degrees received.
- Recognize and acknowledge any survivors, including spouses, parents, and children.
- Announce details of the funeral ie: burial/cremation, webcasting, wake and/or memorial service.
- In conclusion provide a statement indicating where memorial contributions can be sent. (If applicable)
- Time the publication of the obituary so that it runs a few days before the service.
- Click here for examples of Obituaries.