20 Real Examples of Unique Celebrations of Life
Hearing about creative ways to honor a loved one’s life always makes me smile. There are many ways you can personalize a celebration of life, whether you are preplanning your own, or doing so for a relative.
I was pleased to see posts on the r/Askreddit and r/AskWomen subreddits where users shared the one-of-a-kind memorials they’ve attended.
I hope some of these will spark your imagination and will touch you as much as they’ve touched me.
1. Storm Troopers
“A close friend of my dad’s 14-year-old son was killed when he was hit by a car. He was a big Star Wars fan. A local graffiti artist sprayed his coffin with a Star Wars theme. As his coffin arrived, all we could see were these white figures in the distance. Storm Troopers led his coffin to the church and walked him in, with Darth Vader at the front. He was walked into the church to The Imperial March.”
-u/[deleted]
2. A Nevada Hootenanny
“A friend of my dad’s died of cancer at 39. Instead of a funeral, they had a barbecue/hootenanny. My uncle hosted the event at his house in the Sierra Nevada foothills—but it was nice weather and the house is tiny so the party was outside. My dad’s friend played a little guitar; was super into blues, bluegrass, and folk music; and knew a lot of people. So, his family and friends were all there, and most of the friends brought their instruments. There was the usual sharing memories of the departed and a lot of good food, but then there was music. The hootenanny lasted pretty much all day. It was definitely the best memorial service, funeral, or celebration of life I’ve ever attended—and I’ve been to quite a few.”
-u/Much2Laconic
3. Two-foot Tall Wizard Hat
“He was a very eccentric and funny man, and he planned his funeral thoroughly before he died. He left a bunch of handwritten notes in a book for guests to read –the story of his life; deathbed confessions, which included wild stories of drugs, women, travel, and partying that his kids never knew about (with photos!); funny anecdotes; and personal messages, etc. He demanded everyone wear a funny hat to the service, and if you didn't bring one, it would be provided for you by his estate. He had bought dozens and dozens of ridiculous hats. I got a wizard hat that was about two feet tall. Upon entry, every guest was offered a weed edible (still totally illegal in the US at the time), which really made it a party. There was a live band playing circus-like music. A spread of his favorite meal (coffee and muffins), and bottles of tequila were all around.
It was such a fitting tribute. He was such a fun and strange man. It didn't seem right to have a somber and depressing service. Everyone was drunk, high, laughing, crying, dancing. It was perfect.
He was 81 when he died in 2004. I still miss him!”
-u/[deleted]
4. A Harley Davidson Entrance
“My grandfather was big into motorcycles. He had Harley Davidsons as long as I can remember, and even after he had his hip surgery and the doctor told him not to ride anymore, he retooled his bike into a trike so he could still ride.
So, after he died, my uncle outfitted the trike with a special rig (very secure and very safe) so that we could take him to the cemetery in his coffin on the back of the motorcycle. My uncle drove the motorcycle while all the members of my grandfather’s riding club circled him from the funeral parlor to the cemetery. It was bad*** and awesome, and I know my grandfather would've loved it.”
-u/EducatedOwlAthena
5. A "Viking" Funeral
“Putting the ashes of the deceased out to sea in a little boat fashioned out of salt and covered with dry flowers/kindling. Fashioning biodegradable arrows with flaming tips. Everyone shot flaming arrows at the boat and it caught fire then dissolved into the sea.
…Put the ‘fun’ back in ‘funeral.’”
-u/harpejjist
Fun fact: Vikings didn’t actually bury their dead in this way.
6. College Homecoming
“My grandpa was a college football coach. There is a large group of musical cousins in the family. So, we started the service with most of the seats open, sang the Star-Spangled Banner, and then his hundreds of former players poured into the room like it was the beginning of a game. I also found an awesome video from 1984, when he retired, and played that during the service. A great celebration for a guy who led a full life.”
-u/youdubdub
7. A Colorful Sendoff
“I once went to a funeral of a young person who’d died from a terminal illness and had planned her own funeral. She had a white coffin and at the graveside everyone took turns to sign the coffin/write messages in colored marker pens. It was pretty touching.”
-u/lucy_lu_2
8. Study up
“I've attended a funeral where there was a pop quiz on my friend’s life, and if you got it right you'd get a lollie. 😁😁 There was also a playlist that had everyone up dancing. RIP Barb.”
-u/TyrionsLittleImp
9. “The Gayest of Funerals Ever”
“A friend of mine and my Mom’s had always said he wanted ‘the gayest of funerals ever.’ He was pretty young, and had been ostracized from his family when he came out when he was a teen.
Rainbows were everywhere – every surface. The chairs were covered in rainbow fabrics. There were a bunch of guys in leather; drag queens; a couple naked guys (this is / was a thing here in SF Bay Area for a while); and lots and lots of friends and co-workers. Someone played medleys of music on the piano and people sang along. I remember "It's Raining Men" and "Looking for Some Hot Stuff." The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus also sang some stuff, I don't remember if John was in it or just knew a bunch of the guys in it. This was 30ish years ago.”
-u/a_monomaniac
10. Hot Hot Hot
“My husband’s aunt had everybody process out to “Hot Hot Hot” at her funeral. She loved cruises and fun and wanted her final note to be fun.”
-u/sassanach36
11. Steelers Win
“A co-worker's father passed away. As I was getting to where he was laid out, I heard the voices of Jack Fleming and Myron Cope calling Super Bowl IX, and I was immediately confused.
I get to the main room of the funeral home, and my co-worker's father is laid out not in a suit, but as if he were ready for a Sunday afternoon of Steeler football. There was a TV on showing their first Super Bowl win and all kinds of football memorabilia around. My co-worker said they wanted to lay his father out as they truly remembered him.”
-u/SilverFirePrime
12. Theatre Folk
“[My family friend] had worked in theatre since he was a teen and everyone he knew were theatre people. We got to use his old (his first) theatre for the funeral and everyone who was a technician wore their work blacks – he was buried in his, too. Several actors and musicians performed poems and fitting music and we sent him off with a curtain close. It was heart wrenching as he had young kids, but it was the perfect funeral for him.”
-u/ZaMiLoD
13. Cadbury Eggs
“Had a church member unexpectedly pass. She was one for theatrics and was loved by all. We go to her wake and could hear “Free Bird” playing….
When it was time to go up to the casket, there were Cadbury creme eggs on each shoulder and other candy in the casket….
The atmosphere was more positive than drab and dark. She liked to have fun in life and she wanted her funeral to represent that.”
-u/jkmear
14. 50 Cent
“My great grandfather always gave us money. At his funeral, everyone got an envelope with his writing saying he loved us, along with two 50-cent coins. Apparently, he collected 50-cent coins all his life.”
-u/tottaly_not_masters
15. Comic Strip
“The owner of the oldest comic shop in Europe had died. All the local comic makers came by to put a little cartoon on his coffin. It was a very touching tribute.”
-u/comicsnerd
16. Skate Funeral
“An older, well known, local skater died and we held a Skate Funeral. Hung his board, pads and helmet on the fence. A good friend of his eulogized him. Some other folks told some stories about him. After that, we all pounded our boards on the pavement in sync for about 5 minutes, chanting his name and his various handles. Skated hard to his favorite bands and passed the hat for his family.”
-u/stilloldbull2
17. Barbie Pink
“For my granny's funeral we all wore something pink as it was her favourite colour and her casket was also bright pink. The music was mc/new monkey and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” was also played. We all have/aregoing to get tattoos in memorial of her with the number “13” because it was held on Friday the 13th. It was the first funeral I went to and it's safe to say she had a wonderful send off.”
-u/H0telb00ks
18. One Last Drink
“I went to the funeral of a friend who died quite young (21). There were a number of his friends …with his family. We signed and drew on the coffin, laid a bottle of whiskey and a pack of cigarettes in the grave, and after the grave was shut, the young people stayed, sat, drank and chatted all afternoon around and on the grave. It was a small countryside cemetery in a nice landscape. Sunny day. I guess it kept life going.”
-u/Task024
19. Impressions by the Pastor
“My uncle was a very funny, laid-back, casual guy. At his funeral the pastor surprised us by walking into the room wearing clothing like my late uncle's (sweatpants, crocks, old t-shirt). She then opened the eulogy by doing an impression of my uncle.
Now this seems in bad taste...but the thing is she was really good at impressions! It really felt like my uncle had walked into the room. The whole audience was laugh-crying.”
-u/_mothZale
20. Bowling Alley
“I went to a funeral held at a bowling alley. The guy was a huge bowler and was buried with his ball and his bowling shirt. Everyone bowled 10 frames and told their favorite stories. We kept score on paper the old way and everyone wrote a note on their scorecard and dropped it in the casket. It was the best funeral ever.”
-u/kaymick
