Why Send Funeral Thank You Cards
Funeral thank you cards are a lovely way to acknowledge friends and family for their support during a difficult time. Funerals are a time, like weddings and births, when a community comes together. During hardship and grief, family and friends often offer support for those in need. Offering support is a way that people can express their love and support for you, as well as a way they work through their own sadness.
Funeral Thank You Cards Help Others
Personalized funeral thank you cards thank those that cared enough about you to lend a hand, provide a meal, send flowers, or otherwise support you in your time of need. Or, they may have cared for the deceased that they, too, are grieving and want to express this in some helpful way. It is easy to forget, in our own sorrow, that when we grieve, those who care about us grieve as well.
A thank you card is a kindness to let them know that they and their generosity are appreciated. An acknowledgement of their effort can also help to comfort their own grief.
After a funeral, or a long illness, you and the closest relatives are often exhausted. Writing thank you notes may be the very last thing on your mind. However, funeral thank you notes help the recipient heal from their grief and worry. Thank you notes are appreciated by all who receive them. It is always nice to know that your efforts have helped someone in need.
Writing Funeral Thank You Cards Can Help You Too
Not only do sympathy thank you notes benefit the recipient, funeral thank you notes may also help the sender to heal. It has been shown that expressing gratitude can help a person’s mood. Being thankful can ease grief and sadness and increase happiness. So, sending funeral thank you notes helps the recipient feel appreciated and the sender heal from their grief!
What are funeral thank you notes
Funeral thank you notes are a quick note to thank someone for a kindness during an illness and funeral. This may include sending flowers, making a donation to a charity, sending a card, helping during an illness, providing meals, etc.
The notes do not have to be in depth letters. They can be short personalized acknowledgement of the received kindness. As I taught my children (I hope they remember this lesson!) thank you notes do not have to be long or fancy. They do not have to be the next great American novel. They only need to thank someone personally. Sending a short thank you is better than sending none at all and will always be appreciated. However, there may be some special people who you may wish to thank more personally.
Funeral thank you notes can be pre-printed personalized thank you notes specifically for a funeral, as those found here: Personalized Funeral Thank You Notes. Or, they can be written on generic thank you cards with blank inside pages for your personal, handwritten note. If you do send a pre-printed funeral thank you note, it is nice to add a personal message. This only has to be a sentence or two acknowledging the kindness the recipient preformed. For example, “Thank you for the delicious casserole. It was so nice to have a meal ready and waiting when we needed one!”
Where can you get funeral thank you notes
You can purchase blank thank you notes from most card stores. Sometimes even Marshalls will have boxes of pretty thank you cards.
If you would like to get pre-printed funeral cards, several online funeral shops offer them, and they can be found here. Some may mention the name of the deceased and some may include a photo. Photo thank you cards make a nice remembrance of the deceased.
Who should receive funeral thank you notes
Anyone who provided time, support and kindness during and illness and time of funeral can be sent a funeral thank you card. This may include the following:
• Those who sent flowers, handwritten sympathy cards, a donation to a charity, mass cards.
• Aids and helpers such as nurses and doctors
• People who performed in the ceremony such as priests, celebrants, readers, eulogists, pallbearers, musicians, honorary pallbearers, ushers etc.
• Friends and neighbors who provided acts of kindness such as food, babysitting, companion visits
• It is helpful to keep a list of visitors and gifts so that they can be easily thanked. This may prove to be overwhelming, so it is a good project to assign to a friend or family member.
• You can write thank you notes to those who attended the funeral or memorial service, but this is not necessary.
When to send funeral thank you notes
After a funeral, especially after a long illness, you may be exhausted and emotionally drained. You may not be ready to face thanking the many people who have helped or sent a gift or card. That is perfectly o.k., as you must take care of yourself first at this time. Whenever you are ready to write a thank you note is the right time to do so.
Thank you notes can be sent immediately after the funeral if you are ready. Writing thank you notes may even provide you some comfort and distraction. However, you can send funeral thank you cards even up to a year or more after the funeral. People will understand the delay. If funeral thank you notes are more than 6 months after the funeral, however, you may want to preface your note with a reason.
Who should send funeral thank you notes
The closest relative to the deceased, such as a widow or widower or child may send thank you notes. However, if you feel too overwhelmed, it is fine to have someone help, such as a close friend.
If you have received a special personal gift or kindness, you may want to send thank you notes for these yourself.
How to send funeral thank you notes
While a handwritten note is always appreciated, I firmly believe that any thank you is better than none. If you truly feel that you do not have the energy to write thank you notes to all, you can send an email message, text, Facebook message or other electronic means.
If you do send an electronic thank you, follow these up with something handwritten eventually. This is especially true for texts due to their impersonal nature.
What to say in a funeral thank you card
Funeral thank you cards do not have to be in depth, long or difficult. For quick note, they can include a beginning sentence of thanks, and second sentence with personal details, and a quick wrap up.
Some examples of funeral thank you card wording
Wording for a funeral thank you note can be very simple. Just keep to the point, write what you feel. It is easy to mention the specific action or item that you are thankful for and include one line as to why that item or action is special to you.
Funeral Thank You Card Wording Funeral Attendance
• Thank you for coming to _____’s funeral. Your stories and memories of him were comforting as we celebrated his life. Your kindness meant so much to us.
• It was so nice to see you at _____’s funeral. It was kind of you to travel so far to help us remember _____’s life. She always spoke so highly of you.
• Thank you for being part of our ceremony for ______. Your hugs and stories were a comfort. Your stories about the fishing trip made me smile.
As you can see, these notes can be quite short. But they will be meaningful and welcome if you include at least one personal detail.
Funeral Thank You Card Wording for an Act of Kindness
To send a thank you note for a special act of kindness, you can follow the same formula. For example:
• Thank you for sending the beautiful flowers. Roses were always a favorite of ___. Your thoughtfulness is very appreciated in this time.
• Thank you for visiting our family during ____ sickness. Your presence was a great comfort to our family. Your time and thoughtfulness will be remembered.
• Thank you for the donation to ____ made in ____ name. This charitable organization meant a great deal to ____ as they help ____. You have always been a great friend.
• Thank you for the sympathy card. Your words of comfort were so kind and thoughtful.
• Thank you for making the celebration of life for ____ so special. Your eulogy brought back so many good memories. ___ always greatly enjoyed of your time together.
• Thank you for your lovely violin music during ___’s funeral. Your music brought a bit of light to the service. Your talent is truly lovely.
These are just some examples of ways to word funeral thank you notes. It really is easy if you speak from the heart, directly address the recipient, and mention their gift.
Don’t forget that you can purchase personalized funeral thank you card templates here
