Short eulogy for a funeral

What to do when the family asks you to speak the day before. A two-minute eulogy template, a fill-in outline, and the words for last-minute speakers.

Someone has asked you, late, to say a few words tomorrow. You have an hour. Maybe two. You did not have time to write a proper eulogy, and you are looking for something honest and short. This page is for you. The longer example library is at short eulogy examples; this page is the survival version.

The two-minute structure

One sentence: who you are and how you knew them.
One specific image of them: 30 to 45 seconds.
The line you came to say: who they were, in one breath.
One sentence to the family.
Sit down.

That is two hundred and fifty words. Read out loud, two minutes. That is enough.

A fill-in template

My name is [your name]. I knew [name] for [years/how].

Here is the picture of [name] I keep coming back to. [One specific scene, three or four sentences. Where you were. What they did. What they said. What it told you about them.]

That was [name]. [One sentence summing them up, in plain words. Not "an inspiration." Something specific. "The kindest man I have ever stood next to in a kitchen." Or, "The only person who laughed at all of my jokes."]

[To the family:] Thank you for sharing [him/her/them] with us. We will miss [him/her/them] every day.

If you have ten minutes to prepare

Stop writing. Sit somewhere quiet. Close your eyes. Picture the person at one specific moment. Write down what they were wearing, what they were doing, and what they said. That is your middle paragraph. Build the opening and closing around it.

What to skip

The birth date. Skip it. The obituary covers it.
The list of jobs. Skip it.
The list of survivors. The program covers it.
The poem you found online. The room came for you.

For the lectern

Print the eulogy in 16-point font. Double-spaced. Two pages max. Carry it up with you even if you have memorized it. Sip water before you start. The room is on your side. They already know you did not have time to prepare. They will love anything honest you say.

For breathing and pacing on the day, see how to read a eulogy without crying. For a soft opening, see eulogy opening lines. For a soft closing, see eulogy closing lines.

When you are ready, Stillwith helps you draft yours. The intake takes ten minutes.