By: Susan Dugdale
How do you begin to write a meaningful eulogy?
And how is it possible to say everything you want to about a person's entire life story in a few, very brief, minutes?
Both those questions are natural responses to having a eulogy to write for a funeral service.
Grief, together with the desire to honor your loved-one the best way you can, and the pressure of a tight timeframe, can make it feel like an almost insurmountable challenge.
That's why reading what others have written in similar circumstances helps a great deal.
Access to 70+ eulogy examples, the whys and wherefores of the collection: its background, a submission form to use if you want to contribute a eulogy and links to other useful pages on my site.
Quick links
I am fortunate to be able to make available to you a large, and growing, collection of funeral speech examples.
They've been written by people from all over the world, who are just like you and me. They too have family and friends whom they care for deeply.
Look and you'll find examples of eulogies for mothers, fathers, grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, mentors, colleagues, a close friend..., in short: loved ones.
The people who've written them have shared them to help people like yourself. Because they've been where you are now with a funeral speech to prepare, they know how it feels to be searching for inspiration, trying to find a starting point.
Some of the speeches are short. Some of them are funny. All of them are heartfelt, and they appear in the order I received them.
To see them, jump to eulogy samples.
If you're looking for an example of a eulogy for a particular kind of person, and don't want to browse your way through the chronologically ordered list below, use these links to go straight to a collection of:
I've grouped all the speeches I've received through this page according to their type on a new page here: sample eulogies. Whenever a eulogy is submitted, I add its link to the category it belongs to.
It began with two funeral speeches I had written.
Almost as soon as I put them online, they attracted an enormous number of visitors.
It was then I realized the need for more.
I also knew my examples would not answer everybody's needs.
The one for my sister was different in approach.
The one for my friend and next-door neighbor was not what a grieving person with a eulogy speech to write for a close family member really wanted to see.
My two were definitely not enough!
To be really useful there needed to be a wider variety of funeral speeches. We needed eulogies for mothers, fathers, sons, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, colleagues, friends, people who died unexpectedly and suddenly...
And we needed them to reflect the diverse countries and faiths of the people visiting the site.
I decided to ask for more. Lo and behold, they began to arrive through my eulogy submission form below.
After you've read a few eulogy examples, and you want help to prepare your own speech you'll find it here: how to write a good eulogy.
The article has step-by-step instructions, examples, a very useful free 15-page printable eulogy planning template to download, as well as comprehensive answers for 13 FAQs about eulogies:
The people sending their eulogies to me to publish fully appreciate that writing a funeral speech under pressure can be a difficult, sad and lonely task - sometimes one of the hardest things they've ever done.
They know from experience having examples to read can lessen that burden. It's a good way of starting to find the right words to tell their own personal stories and share their favorite memories about a person they have loved.
Theirs is a kind and generous act, one that's been repeated over 70 times already.
Wonderfully, some of the people who've come searching for help to write their own eulogy, have returned to share what they've written.
(Read Craig's comment below his eulogy for his Grandmother, Bertha or Byrona's below her eulogy for her Dad for verification.
Both were helped by funeral speeches they found here and wanted what they had written to assist others in the same way.)
It would help others enormously.
Every day people look for tips on how to a write eulogy or to find eulogy examples to read. I know because I see it reflected in my website visitor statistics.
I also know because of the comments people leave under speeches. They are so very grateful to have found a eulogy expressing how they feel.
For instance, see the comments on Eulogy for my Son, on Eulogy for my Grandmother - Bertha, or Sharon Catley's poem for her Mother, Journey's End.
You know how it generally is with a speech of this sort. Typically, there is not much time to prepare, and you want to get it right.
Reading what others have done helps in the best possible way.
These eulogies inspire and give people the courage to do what they need to do.
Despite our differences what we all have in common is the desire to speak about our loved ones the very best way we can.
The more examples we have, the more likely a person is going to find a speech that resonates and meets their needs.
You too could help by submitting the eulogy you've written. It's very simple to do.
PS. If you would like to share your eulogy but have privacy concerns around using your loved one's name you could use a fictional name, like Bob or Sue in place of their real one. Be assured too, that although there is the possibility that people reading your speech might wish to respond, no comment goes live without my permission.
Click the headline links below to read the eulogies or funeral speeches shared by visitors to this page...
Eulogy for my Grandmother
Thank you all for coming. This turnout is testament to the magnificent woman my grandmother was. My name is XXXXX and I am the youngest grandchild of XXXXX. …
Forever in my thoughts
It is said, "There are some people in life that make you laugh a little louder, smile a little bigger and just live a little better." Jennifer was definitely …
Celebrating my Mother, Mummy
You were a wife, a mother, a grandmother, a daughter, a sister, an aunt, a friendly and helpful neighbor ... All these roles you played have given us …
Remembering Dr Bruce - My Mentor
Whenever I got into trouble, which was a lot in our earlier years, he would call me into the office and say, "You really need to go to church!"
Are …
Eulogy for my Older Brother
Family, Friends, and loved ones, It is an honor and privilege for me to stand before you today and pay tribute to a very special, and irreplaceable person …
My husband's "dash" (1944 - 2021)
Welcome. We start today with Bill's own words that he left behind in his stack of journal notes and To Do Lists. For all of you who are here, you …
Brendan, My friend
Thank you all for coming to help celebrate Brendan's life and share our grief at his passing.
My name is Anthony, or as Brendan called me Tony, or sometimes …
Welcome to the Celebration of Heather's Life
On behalf of Heather's family, friends and most of all her fiancé Kevin, I would like to welcome you to Heather's Celebration of life.
For that is …
Eulogy to my mentor and spiritual Father, Rev. Fr. Elias Anyora
My father, my mentor, my friend. You call me, "my son" and I call you, "my father". Such was our relationship.
I felt your passing away on the 15th …
Eulogy for my little sister, Suzy.
Today is the saddest day of my life since we lost Joseph 18 years ago and before that our parents, Roy and Yolande. We knew Suzy's path was set many months …
Our mother
Our mother was born in xxxxx. Her parents xxxx and xxxxx came to live in England from Ireland.
She was brought up by her older siblings as her parents …
Tribute to Mrs Charmaine Isaac
Through my teacher and mentor, Prof Isaac, I have been blessed with knowing this remarkable family for over fifty years.
Over the two decades my wife …
My mother was the greatest and most wonderful woman
My mother, Lucy Marie Duran, was born on January 23 1949, in Mesilla, New Mexico. She was one of the eight children, five girls and three boys, who were …
Eulogy examples for an uncle
Today I stand in front of you all with a deep hole in my heart. And this is not just my heart that has a hole it is all of yours as well. From wife, father, …
Jimbo Bro - my wee brother
Hi!
Firstly, on behalf of my family and myself, I'd like to thank you all for being here, and for all your thoughts, prayers, and kindness we have received …
Linda, My Sister, My Friend
I am honored and privileged to have spent my entire life knowing and having Linda as my Sister.
We say that the hour of death cannot be forecast, but …
Grandad’s Tribute
A legend. You were a humble man full of love, strength and encouragement to us. In life and now death you wouldn't want us to focus on the sadness and …
Remembering our nanny, Maureen McDonnell - gentle, petite, yet mighty.
There's a saying that I found, which goes: "Nothing is so strong as gentleness, and nothing is so gentle as real strength". That saying could have …
For my sister-in-law Tracey
A few minutes to encompass 32 years of love and friendship can’t be done, but as you asked me to speak here today Tracey, I promise to give it my best …
Eulogy example - Eulogy for a Heroine - Halima Obehi Jubrin
How can anyone forget in a hurry the amazing personality and lofty future that Honourable Halima represents? Seeing her picture again this morning made …
In loving memory of Meagan Lourens, our Manager
We often say that the hour of death cannot be forecast. When we say this we imagine this hour would be in a distant future. We never thought we would be …
Dad
(*This eulogy was submitted using XXX in the place of the real names of people, streets and cities for privacy reasons. To make it easier to read I've …
Eulogy for my Brother with Downs Syndrome
Eulogy for Christophe Payne 1968 - 2016
50 years ago when Chris was born, a Downs Syndrome child was considered a family tragedy - that a child should …
Eulogy for my co-worker Donna
A mirror or reflection. I want the audience to see in their imagination what the life of Donna was all about. See Donna’s whole person: her strengths, …
Remembering Dad
First I would like to thank all of you for your support. It means so much to us all.
Vincent was my father but he was also father to Donna, Joey, John …
Tribute to a friend, Vasu
Yesterday, I a dear friend did lose
Mentor & colleague beyond excuse
A legend of iconic status
Foundation of Crossmoor's success
Education your …
Father-In-Law, I Look Forward to the Day We Meet Again
On Saturday, December 3rd, 2016 at 3:00 pm, Richard J. Carlin joined our Father in his heavenly home. We are all blessed to have been part of his life, …
My son, my moon
I am Sam's mother. I am going to do the hardest job of speaking at the funeral of my son Sampuran Mann.
He was born on 11 April 1960. It was a puranmashi …
Eulogy for My Cousin Larry
I can hear the angels laughing as they met Larry at the gates of heaven. He said to them,
“Did you hear about the two gold fish in a tank? They were …
Eulogy to my one and only older brother, Danny
Good evening, I am Danny's sister. Mary, daughter #2 as Pop, our dad, used to say to others when we were out and about...especially at the market... which, …
My Grandma - The Farmer's wife
Good Morning! I’m one of Judy’s many grandchildren. On behalf of our family we thank you for helping us pay respect to a wonderful person, someone who …
Eulogy for my Grandmother (Nani)
One of the hardest things a person has to do in life is write and give an eulogy on the passing away of a loved one. Last week, my Nani left for her heavenly …
For my Granny
When I was younger, my grandmother used to take me to reading time at the library every week. I don’t remember much about the actual library sessions, …
Grandma Helen, a member of "The Greatest Generation"
Hello. My name is Sarah and I am Helen’s granddaughter. I want to thank you all for coming. Your attendance here speaks volumes about the impact that …
To Dad from Your Son
There is a special bond that a father has with his son. That bond builds strength over the time and events that each of us are fortunate enough to share …
Terry Denison's Eulogy
For those who do not know who I am, my name is John - Paul Brunet and I have be given the honor of giving this Eulogy for an amazing man and a good friend, …
To a mentor
This morning, I woke up to some terrible news. My benefactor and mentor, the man who hugely shaped my view on life, work, and many other things, had passed …
My Beloved Brother - Junior
First and foremost, I would like to thank each and every one of you for your support and prayers for my family over the past two very difficult weeks. …
Love goes on
Death is not the end, For love goes on And you will find the evidence Long after I have gone. The flowers that we planted Will blossom without end, You’ll …
Ted Jacobs
So many hats ... So many titles ... So many words I have learned to call Ted Jacobs;
- Businessman,
- Proprietor,
- Teacher,
- Mentor,
- Solider, …
For Dad (who died suddenly aged 71)
Firstly I would like to thank you all for your support and flowers and cards for my Mum over the past 10, very difficult days. It has meant an awful lot …
To my best friend
Good Afternoon. My name is Abraham and José was my loyal friend, my confidant, my mentor for 15 years. He was more like my older brother. We had many experiences …
Farewell Mai
Before the Liberation somewhere in the year 1955 Custodio Fernandes of Savoi Verem was no more. My Grandmother Joaquina became a widow.
Present among …
Eulogy for my friend Cecil Wayne Pulliam
This eulogy was given in response to being asked to speak on behalf of the congregation we both belong to.
Some of the ideas for it came from this site. …
Eulogy for Grandma
It seems like the older I get, the more I appreciate my grandparents. It’s amazing how often their names have come up in conversation in recent years. …
Farewell Cupcake A eulogy to my little sister
When I sat down to write this speech, there were so many beautiful things that I wanted to say about Jessica that I didn’t know where to start. None of …
Life Advice!
This is my pre-planned funeral address. It's made up of life advice quotes that I’ve heard from others, read, or thought of myself. I've been collecting …
Farewell Tribute
Farewell, B Robinson, the Perfect Gentleman B. C., Brother Opeh; your life with us will always be remembered. You have been the perfect gentleman to …
Eulogy for a Friend
GABRIEL VON SUCH, Gabby, to his friends and colleagues was such a nice, soft-spoken man, with a ready smile for everyone.
When he asked me to stand …
Farewell to our brother-in-law Alex Ijeh
God saw you getting tired
And a cure was not meant to be.
So he put his arms around you
And whispered 'Come to Me'.
With tearful eyes we watched you …
Eulogy for my Father
Farewell the Perfect Gentleman
Papa, your life with us will always be remembered. You have been the perfect gentleman to everyone you came across. …
A Man of God who Made History
Eulogy for my father-in-law R.K.Samuel
Some people watch history, some people make history. Our beloved father and Uncle R.K. Samuel, I would say …
Grandmother Eulogy
In many families, grandparents are a somewhat abstract concept; there are pictures of them around the house, you might get a birthday card in the mail, …
Eulogy for my Brother
Friends, loved ones and family -
It is an honor and privilege for me to pay tribute today to a very special person, my brother Jose Juan Ornelas.
My …
In Loving Memories
Jerry Winston
1957-2010 Mr. Jerry Winston, 52, of Laurel Maryland, died Wednesday, January 13, 2010, after losing his battle with cancer.
…
Eulogy for my Grandfather - A Life Full of Pride, Joy and Happiness
For those of you who don’t know me, I am Christian, and Richard was my grandpa. He lived a life that was full of pride, joy, and happiness. He took pride …
Eulogy Poem for Mother
The funeral or eulogy poem below was written by Canadian poet Sharon Catley to honor her mother Alberta Stoley.
She kindly sent it with the thought …