How To Write An Obituary For A Mother (2023)

When it comes to writing obituaries, it can be hard to know where to start. Writing an obituary for your mother can offer its own set of complications. How can you accurately sum up the impact your mother had on you and your family in the form of an obituary? What kind of information should you include? Here's where to start when it comes to how to write an obituary for mothers.

What kind of information should you include in an obituary for a loving mother?

Practically, you want to include the following biographical information in an obituary:

• Name
• Age
• Birthplace
• Parents' Names
• Spouse's Name (if applicable) and Children's Names

Including this information in an obituary is standard and helps serve as a record of the individual's life. Other typical biographical information includes occupation, education, and military service. However, when writing an obituary for a mother, you may want to focus on other aspects of her life that were particularly important to you.

What else should I say about my mother in her obituary?

Your mother was undoubtedly an important figure in your life, and, likely, the lives of others.

Include a brief overview of her life. This can be touching, or it can be strictly factual. Avoid going into too much detail if you want to be mindful of length (which you don't need to be, if you have an Ever Loved obituary); save that for the funeral service or eulogy.

It can be helpful to begin by including some details about the life of your mother and what her impact was on others. Focusing on the impact that your mother had on her family, friends, and community can help you put together a good story of her life that those she knew can read.This section could also mention any areas where she may have struggled or experienced difficulties during her life. However, it's also important to remember to focus on the positive aspects of your mother's life and what made her unique.

You should weave in her impact, her hobbies, her passions, and her struggles throughout the biographical information you're providing. This can help the obituary read as a story rather than as a statement of just biographical facts.

Here's a brief list of information you can include that's aside from the biographical information:

• Her hobbies, passions, and interests
• Any clubs, organizations, volunteer work she was a part of
• Her values, sayings, or words of wisdom
• Her favorite places to travel, things to eat, meals to make, or things to do
• Her relationship with her family, friends, and community
• Her style as a mother and what you felt made her special as a mother and a person
• Any other aspect of her life or personality that you felt made her special or unique

Important tips when writing an obituary for mothers

Now that you have the content in mind, it's time to start writing the obituary. Before you get started, here are some tips to keep in mind when writing an obituary for a mom:

• Keep the tone in mind.
• Acknowledge special accomplishments outside of motherhood.
• Recognize the importance of her relationship with the family, if you'd like to.
• Recognize the importance of her mothering style and ways, if you'd like to.
• Describe hobbies, passions, and other activities she was passionate about or involved in.
• Be mindful of the length if you need to publish the obituary in a newspaper. (Newspapers charge by the line and many obituaries of even just 4-5 sentences can cost hundreds of dollars. If you have an online obituary on Ever Loved, you don't need to worry about length.)
• Be sure to include important service information if applicable.

Publish an obituary

Sample obituary for mothers

For an example of how to write an obituary for your mother, you can reference the sample below:

Zara Khatri, 82, of Santa Barbara, passed away on March 17th after a brief battle with breast cancer. She was surrounded by her loved ones at the time she passed.

Zara was born on February 3rd, 1939 to Ethel and Anton Fedorov in Chicago, IL. After graduating from Chicago East in 1956, Zara went on to study sociology, a subject she was always passionate about, at University of Chicago.After graduation, she landed her first job as a Administrative Data Associate for Kessel & Joy, where she would stay for 18 years. It was also during this time that Zara also found her passion for hiking and swimming after joining a club at work, which she'd continue being involved in until her passing.

In 1966, she met the love of her life, Mayan Khatri, and they wed in 1969, going on to have three children, Amy, Maya, and Samir.

When Zara had her first child, Samir, she decided to dedicate her life to being a fantastic and wonderful mother. Zara excelled at motherhood and was the foundation of our family, through and through. She was an excellent gift giver, always knew the right thing to say, never missed a special date, and picking the best spots to hike and sightsee. Whether it was supporting Amy through law school or encouraging Mayan to pursue carpentry, she was our constant cheerleader and supporter.

Zara was a passionate outdoorswomen and when she wasn’t filling her home with warmth and kindness, she could be found scoping out new and untreaded paths on her favorite local hiking spots.

Zara was predeceased by her parents, Ethen and Anton, her husband, Mayan, and her sister, Brenda. She is survived by her children, Amy, Maya, and Samir, as well as many grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and friends.

The family requests that donations be made to Nature Conservancy in lieu of flowers. There will be a celebration of life at 9:30 AM on March 24th at Arroyo Burro Beach.

Here is the template, which you can edit and use as you see fit:

[Full name], [age], of [place of residence], passed away on [date of death] after a [descriptor] battle with [cause of death].

[First name] was born on [date and year of birth] to [parents] in [city of birth]. After graduating from [name of high school] in [high school graduation year], [he/she] went on to study [college major] at [college name].

After graduation, [he/she] landed [his/her] first job as a [job title] for [company] for [years].

In [year they met], [he/she] met [spouse name], and they wed in [marriage year], going on to have [number of children] children, [list of children’s names].

When [name] had [first child], she decided to dedicate her life to being a fantastic and wonderful mother. [Name] excelled at propping up [members of her family] and supporting them through the many passions and difficulties of their lives. Whether that was [supporting spouse/child] through [difficulty] or [supporting spouse/child] through [passion], she made it her mission to improve the lives of others.

[Name] was a passionate [name of personal hobby or craft] and when she wasn’t filling her home with warmth and kindness, she could be found in her [location] practicing [hobby]. We will miss her greatly.

[First name] was predeceased by [list of family members who have passed away]. [She/He] is survived by [list of family members who are still alive].

The family requests that all flowers and notes are sent to [location]. There will be a [funeral service/memorial/celebration of life] at [date & time] at [location].

If you’re looking more free obituary templates for mothers, be sure to read this list of obituary templates.

When you’re ready to post an obituary for your mom, publish an obituary for free using Ever Loved. Ever Loved obituaries are entirely free and come with tons of other features, such as the ability to post and collect condolences, start a fundraiser, share event information, and much more. On top of that, you have unlimited space to share your mom’s story with your friends, family, and community.

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