How to Have a Service for the Placement of a Memorial Marker
Memorial services are a vital part of the grieving process for many people. They help provide closure and give family and friends an opportunity to show their love and support for the bereaved. While many people give their deceased loved ones a traditional burial and funeral service, others may choose to simply place a memorial marker, such as a gravestone or a cross, and hold a service independent of a burial or cremation. These services may take place shortly after the person's death or as much as a year or more later.
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Things You'll Need
- Memorial marker
- Decorations (optional)
- Music (optional)
- Readings (optional)
- Food (optional)
Instructions
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Invite the people you wish to include by phone, letter or email. Memorial services tend to be less formal than funerals, so a casual invitation is acceptable.
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Select a location that means something to you or was important to the deceased. Make sure it is legal for you to place a marker there and that the marker will be undisturbed by children or animals. If you are erecting a gravestone in a cemetery, make arrangements with the organization according to its protocols.
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Decorate the venue or location of the service with flowers, photographs, candles or anything that has meaning to you or your loved one. Enlist people to help you who were not as close to the deceased as you were. If you become caught up in the emotion of the occasion, they may be better able to finish preparing things.
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Select readings and/or music to present at the service that honor the deceased and acknowledge your feelings and those of the other mourners. Choose readings and music that would have made the deceased happy, giving you and your guests an opportunity to celebrate his life as well as mourn his death.
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Arrange for food to be served after the service, and decide where you want this segment to be. You can make or bring snacks, have a meal catered or request guests to bring a dish to share. Do not serve alcohol at a memorial service.
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Bring or meet your guests at the location where you are placing the marker. Share the readings or music you have chosen, say prayers if it is your custom, place the marker and, if you wish, invite guests to speak in memory of the deceased. Share food and memories at a small distance from the site of the marker when your service is finished, or go to another site for the food and memories.
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Tips & Warnings
Enlist friends to help you plan and execute the service.
Invite a clergyman to speak if you are holding a religious ceremony.
References
Resources
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