Deceased Parents On Wedding Invitations

Should deceased parents be listed on a wedding invitation?

Our Thoughts

This is a really great question. Sadly you are not required by wedding etiquette to include deceased parents on your formal wedding invitations which is a little cold I think. The reason being is that it is the hosts of the event whose name should appear on the invitation.

Working with couples over the years in the same situation, we have come up with new options in how to include parents that have passed away if you do want their names to appear in the wedding invitation.

Here is an example:

Linda Grace Taylor
Daughter of Mr. John Taylor and the late Mrs. Taylor
and Chris Timothy Salem
son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Salem
request the honor of your presence ...

There are lots of other ways to pay tribute to your deceased parents throughout the event as well.

Some couples have a Chair of Remembrance at the ceremony which simply is an empty chair where the parent would have been seated. The couple would publicly or privately leave a single rose or photo on that chair for others to know that though they are not physically there, they are with them in spirit.

Some couples write a small tribute in their programs to that parent. My most favorite couple chose instead of dancing with someone else during the Mother/Son dance to actually play a video of photo and video memories of both the groom and his mom to the music he would have danced with her to. There was not a dry eye in the house, including my own.

Best of luck with how you choose to honor them.

Regards,
Danielle