How to Personalize a Themed Funeral

Whether you’re planning a traditional funeral or an unconventional one, you can make it more memorable by adding a theme. Clothing, floral tributes, décor, music, and food can all come together in a theme that reflects the life you’re honoring.

A themed funeral gives guests a chance to be involved even if they won’t be giving a eulogy or performing a song. By wearing a certain type of clothing or adding their own item to the décor, they can be an integral part of remembering the deceased.

Adding a theme to a funeral can be very simple. Some themed funerals just concentrate on color. Perhaps you’ve seen an obituary that suggests funeral guests wear purple, or that they avoid black clothing in favor of bright colors. That’s a funeral theme, and it’s a simple but meaningful way to remember someone’s favorite color or bright spirit.

But you don’t have to keep a theme simple. Some families go all out when planning a funeral around a theme that reflects their loved one’s interests. Here are a few ideas for incorporating a theme into a funeral:

Sports

If your loved one was a super sports fan, especially if they had a favorite team, you’ve got an obvious theme to plan their funeral around. Guests can be asked to wear the team’s colors, and those who own team gear can wear that, too. Décor, such as floral arrangements, can focus on those colors as well, and a team logo can find its way into a floral basket or a table centerpiece at a reception. The photos of your loved one you display for the visitation or ceremony can include as many as possible when they were wearing team gear, attending a game, or playing a sport. A fight song or the Monday Night Football theme could be played at a key moment – rather than feeling irreverent, it will probably make friends and family smile as they remember how that song got your loved one fired up.

Genealogy

If your loved one put a ton of work into investigating the family’s roots, celebrate that with a genealogy/heritage-themed funeral. Family trees and other genealogical research can be displayed at the visitation or reception alongside the more traditional photo boards. The photo boards can also include any photos the genealogist collected of long-ago ancestors. Symbols of the ethnic heritage discovered by the genealogist can also be part of the décor, whether that’s Swedish dala horses or Ghanaian kente cloth (or both!). Guests can be invited to wear clothing reflecting their own ethnic heritage, though not everyone will be able to pull this together on short notice.

Travel

A world traveler can be remembered at home with a travel-themed funeral. If they had a specific favorite destination, focus the funeral on that. It could be a tropical theme, an Alpine ski theme, or anything else they loved. If they traveled to New Orleans for Mardi Gras every year, include beads and try to plan a jazz procession. If an annual fishing retreat to the North Woods was more their style, the reception room can reflect the look and feel of a rustic lodge. If they had a thirst to see everything with no one favorite place, make the theme an eclectic mix of items reflecting the diversity of their travel. If they collected souvenirs on their travels, these can be displayed at the visitation or reception.

Movies

A movie buff’s funeral can have a Hollywood theme. Flowers and décor can reflect the glitz of the silver screen. Some families create a video tribute for a funeral, scrolling through favorite photos and home movies of the deceased. You can bring a movie theme to this video tribute by interspersing scenes from the deceased’s favorite films with the personal photos and videos. Music played in the service can include highly recognizable movie themes like the ones from “Star Wars” or “Harry Potter” or “Ghostbusters,” depending on your loved one’s personal favorites. Guests might even enter the ceremony on a red carpet, just like the stars do.

Holidays

If your loved one counted down the days to Christmas each year, or planned their Halloween costume in January, honor that love by theming the funeral around their most beloved holiday. It doesn’t matter if it’s August – guests can be asked to dress to reflect the holiday of choice, and Christmas trees or Valentine’s hearts can adorn the room. If your loved one collected holiday decorations, those items should absolutely be included as you gather to remember their life.

Favorite Music

A dedicated rock fan should almost certainly have rock music played at their funeral, but you can do even more than that. Each guest can be a part of the theme by wearing a t-shirt of their favorite band. If the deceased played an instrument, display it at the visitation or reception – this can be especially effective if they had a collection, such as several guitars. Rock posters can adorn the walls. If there’s a procession from the funeral to the cemetery, a vintage car from the deceased’s favorite era of rock and roll can lead the way.

Superheroes

If the deceased loved superhero comics and movies – or maybe if they always wanted to be a superhero – remember them with a super-powered funeral. Pallbearers can dress as caped crusaders. The funeral program can have the look of a classic superhero comic book. Clips from favorite Marvel or DC movies can play quietly as the family receives guests.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg in terms of ideas for themed funerals. Whatever your loved one was most passionate about, you can probably find a way to theme their funeral around it.

Adding a theme to a funeral can present a little extra work – or a lot – so be sure to ask your funeral director for help. You might be surprised at how much they can do to help a theme come together for the perfect way to remember your loved one.

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