Giving the Eulogy for a Grandfather – a Special Honour, and a Special Responsibility

The first eulogy I ever gave was for my own grandfather, Tom. It was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done, but also one of the most rewarding.

My grandfather and I were very close, and I’d even lived with him for a year when I was 18, so I was very keen to be the one to speak about his life. But it was also a tricky situation because I knew my grandfather had also had some troubles in his life, and had not always got on well with all of his family. So when I sat down to write his eulogy I had a number of questions running through my head – What should I include? What should I leave out? Should I mention my uncle’s strong negative feelings towards my grandfather, or just ignore that? Is it ok to make jokes? What about his sisters who I barely even know? And because I had no guide, no handbook on what to do or how to do it, it was a very stressful time for me!

In the end I spoke to all the relatives I could and asked them for their memories and thoughts on my grandfather, and then did my best to include everyone’s point of view, including my uncle’s. I was nervous on the day, but I spoke from my heart, and many people told me afterwards that they really appreciated what I had said, and the fact that I had stood up and said it. They were very glad that someone from the family had delivered my grandfather’s eulogy.

Since that time I have delivered more than 100 more eulogies in my role as a professional Funeral Presider (taking the role traditionally taken by the priest). And I have noticed that there is a 6 step process that you can use which makes writing and giving a great eulogy far, far easier. You do not have to do it all alone like I did that first time.

You can see my eulogy for my grandfather in full on the Eulogy Examples page.

And you can see more about the 6 steps in my downloadable, to-the-point guide How to Write and Deliver a Great Eulogy in 6 Simple Steps. It comes complete with many example eulogies, poems, quotations and public speaking tips, plus my personal, 100% money-back satisfaction guarantee. You can read more about the guide here.

Or to buy the guide straight away, click here.