Best ways to celebrate a loved one's life?

[FrugalSaver]

I'm making a slide show with music.  A few stories will be told.

Any other good suggestions to make the most of a celebration of one's life after they've passed?

[mustachepungoeshere]

I'm making a slide show with music.  A few stories will be told.

Any other good suggestions to make the most of a celebration of one's life after they've passed?

Firstly, I'm sorry for your loss.

I went to a memorial a couple of years ago where they had printed out hundreds of photos of the deceased with friends and family. They printed up two or three of each photo, pegged them up, and encouraged people to take the prints as a memento.

[HappierAtHome]

I'm sorry for your loss, Frugal Saver.

When my very beloved Aunt died, we created a 'memorial booklet' that had a few especially lovely photos of her, short anecdotes from her loved ones to illustrate what a cool and unique human she was, and a poem a friend wrote about her. I still have this saved in PDF form and it's nice to be able to read it and think about her with love.

[FrugalSaver]

Thanks for the ideas

[lthenderson]

Years ago when my grandfather died, we had a giant cookout/grillout around a large bonfire with provided drinks. Everyone ate, drank, sat around the fire and told stories until late at night. I never laughed and cried so much in one night and I have always remembered it like it was yesterday though it was a quarter century ago.

[soccerluvof4]

Sorry for your loss. A small but cool idea my DW sisters did was have some of their fathers cool shirts turned into accent pillows. They turned out really nice.  Also he was into baseball so they made shadow boxes that included old gloves, balls, pictures etc...

[FrugalSaver]

Thanks for the ideas everyone

[Capsu78]

If there are kids, grandkids, cousins and family around, one easy to do thing is to make a list from A to Z prior to the memorial service and have them chose something about the loved ones memories that captures something about that persons memories starting with each letter.  If you can talk the kids into sharing the reading it at the memorial all the better...

My favorite remembrance was for my Aunt who passed at 92- when they got to W, the grandkids said "warm beer" because my aunt used to run a tavern and only drank warm beer because "cold beer" was for the customers!

[HappierAtHome]

Did your loved one enjoy cooking? If so, what about collecting their favourite recipes (especially any handwritten ones you can scan!!) to create a little cookbook for everyone who cared about them?

[AMandM]

My sympathy to you in your loss.

If there will be time when people are moving around & mingling (rather than sitting in rows at a ceremony), you could have paper and sheets of pretty paper available, with the invitation for people to write a memory or story about the deceased.  Afterwards, the stories could be collected in a book for one person (say, if there is a widow/widower) or shared among the family.

[RosieTR]

My condolences, Frugal Saver!

Several suggestions here have been great. I want to add that I think the most important thing is to make it about the deceased. My FIL's memorial was about not dressing up (he wore bib overalls to our wedding, and I never saw him in anything else until he was sick and wore PJs) and eating friend chicken (his favorite). For a friend who died in a climbing accident, her climbing friends told stories and they had pictures of all her adventures on a pegboard. For a friend's grandmother who was VERY Catholic, they held a Mass. Each of these really was *that* person, which is why I remember them some years later. OTOH, it was very jarring to have to picture my uncle "in the arms of Jesus" which was brought up at his memorial, because he really was NOT that kind of man. It would have been better if everyone had passed around a bottle of bourbon!

[RNwastash]

When my daughter, 18 years old, died 5 months ago, we held a Catholic Mass and then a "Celebration of Life" luncheon afterwards for the non-Catholics.  I made a speech and then invited some of her friends who wanted to share a memory about her that others would have wanted to know.  I prepped her friends via Facebook so that they would be prepared.  I also did leave note cards and pens on the tables for people to share memories if they weren't comfortable sharing/ public speaking.  I did also print photos and taped them on poster boards that I allowed people to take after the ceremony.  My condolences to you as well. 

[clarkfan1979]

My grandfather made his own wine. I helped him make some of it when I was a kid. After the funeral, almost everyone came back to the house and started opening up and drinking his bottles of wine that were stored in the basement. I am sorry for your loss.