[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":49},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-funeral-program-template":3},{"html":4,"toc":5,"faqs":27},"\u003Cp>Funeral homes charge between $2 and $6 per printed program. For a service with 120 people that is up to $720, for something a home printer produces in twenty minutes.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Here is a free template, plus what to actually write in each section, which is the part that stops people.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>\u003Ca href=\"/downloads/funeral-program-template.pdf\">Download the template (PDF)\u003C/a>\u003C/strong> - bifold, US Letter, prints on any home printer. No email required.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"what-the-template-is\">What the template is\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>A standard bifold program. One sheet of 8.5 x 11 paper, folded in half, giving four panels:\u003C/p>\n\u003Cdiv class=\"table-wrap\">\u003Ctable>\n\u003Cthead>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Cth>Panel\u003C/th>\n\u003Cth>What goes on it\u003C/th>\n\u003C/tr>\n\u003C/thead>\n\u003Ctbody>\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>\u003Cstrong>Front cover\u003C/strong>\u003C/td>\n\u003Ctd>Name, dates, photograph, service details\u003C/td>\n\u003C/tr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>\u003Cstrong>Inside left\u003C/strong>\u003C/td>\n\u003Ctd>Order of service, pallbearers, interment\u003C/td>\n\u003C/tr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>\u003Cstrong>Inside right\u003C/strong>\u003C/td>\n\u003Ctd>The obituary or life story, survived by, a quote\u003C/td>\n\u003C/tr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>\u003Cstrong>Back cover\u003C/strong>\u003C/td>\n\u003Ctd>Thank you message, reception details, donations\u003C/td>\n\u003C/tr>\n\u003C/tbody>\u003C/table>\u003C/div>\n\u003Cp>Bifold is the format almost every funeral home uses, for good reasons: one sheet per program, no stapling, enough room for a real obituary without crowding, and it works on a home printer.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>The PDF is set up as two landscape pages. Page one is the outside, page two is the inside. Print double sided and fold once down the middle.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"the-three-minute-version\">The three-minute version\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>If the service is tomorrow and you have no time:\u003C/p>\n\u003Col>\n\u003Cli>Download the PDF and open it in Acrobat Reader, Preview, or any PDF editor.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Replace everything in square brackets. Every placeholder is marked \u003Ccode>[ like this ]\u003C/code>.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Drop a photo into the dashed box on the front cover.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Print one copy first and check it. Then print the rest.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Fold.\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ol>\n\u003Cp>Everything below is for when you have a bit more time, or when you get stuck on what to write.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"what-goes-in-each-section\">What goes in each section\u003C/h2>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"the-front-cover\">The front cover\u003C/h3>\n\u003Cp>Four things, in this order:\u003C/p>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>"In loving memory of"\u003C/strong> or similar. Alternatives: \u003Cem>Celebrating the life of\u003C/em>, \u003Cem>In remembrance of\u003C/em>, or simply the person's name with no preamble, which can be the most dignified option.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Their name.\u003C/strong> Use the name people actually called them. If everyone called your grandmother Nan, "Margaret 'Nan' Sullivan" is better than the version from her birth certificate.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>The dates.\u003C/strong> Birth and death. Some families add the age.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>The photograph.\u003C/strong> More on this below, because it matters more than anything else on the page.\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\u003Cp>Then service details: what kind of service, when, where, and who is officiating.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"choosing-the-photograph\">Choosing the photograph\u003C/h3>\n\u003Cp>This is the decision people agonize over and then regret. A few things that help.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Not the most recent one. The most them one.\u003C/strong> A photograph from fifteen years ago where they are laughing at something off camera is a better memorial than a technically superior portrait from last year where they look uncomfortable.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Avoid the formal studio portrait\u003C/strong> unless that genuinely is how people picture them. Those photos tend to look like a stranger wearing your relative's face.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Check the resolution before you commit.\u003C/strong> A photo that looks fine on a phone can print badly. For the 2.85 inch box in this template you want an image at least 900 pixels on its shortest side. If it is a photograph of a photograph, retake it in daylight, flat, no flash, no shadow from your own head.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Black and white forgives a lot.\u003C/strong> If the only good photo has a bad background, a distracting color cast, or a stranger's arm in it, converting to black and white often saves it.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"the-order-of-service\">The order of service\u003C/h3>\n\u003Cp>List what will actually happen, in sequence. The template includes the standard eleven elements. Delete anything that does not apply, and do not feel obliged to fill every line.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>A typical sequence:\u003C/p>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Prelude\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Welcome\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Opening prayer or reading\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Hymn or song\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Scripture reading or poem\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Eulogy\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Tributes and reflections\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Musical selection\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Message or homily\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Closing prayer\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Recessional\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\u003Cp>Name the people. "Eulogy - Sarah Whitfield, daughter" tells the room who is speaking and why, which saves the officiant from explaining it. Include song and reading titles, because people want to know what they are about to hear, and some will want to look it up afterward.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>If the service is secular, swap prayers for readings and the homily for reflections. Nothing else changes.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"the-obituary-panel\">The obituary panel\u003C/h3>\n\u003Cp>The section that stops everyone. Here is a structure that works.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Paragraph one - where they came from.\u003C/strong> Born when, where, to whom. Early life in two or three sentences.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Paragraph two - what they did and what they were known for.\u003C/strong> Work, service, the thing they built or cared for. \u003Cstrong>This is where you put the specific details,\u003C/strong> and this is the difference between a program people keep and one they leave on the chair.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Generic: \u003Cem>She was a devoted mother who loved her family.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Specific: \u003Cem>She answered the phone "well, hello stranger" no matter who it was, including her own children. She made a lemon cake that nobody has successfully reproduced. She could not watch a hockey game sitting down.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>The second version is the one that makes a room laugh and then cry. Every family has three details like this. Ask around before you write and you will have more than you can use.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Paragraph three - family, and the ending.\u003C/strong> Marriage, children, grandchildren. Then when and where they died, and at what age.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Then survived by and preceded in death by.\u003C/strong> Listed, not in prose. Standard order: spouse, children and their spouses, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, siblings, then others. Get the spellings right. People notice their own name being misspelled in a funeral program and they remember it.\u003C/p>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"the-back-cover\">The back cover\u003C/h3>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>The thank you.\u003C/strong> The template has standard wording you can use as is. If you want to write your own, keep it short and do not try to be eloquent. "Thank you for being here. It has meant everything to us" is enough.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Reception details.\u003C/strong> Where, and when. "Immediately following" is standard. Include the address, because half the room is not local.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Donations.\u003C/strong> If the family prefers donations to flowers, name the organization and make it easy. Adding the website or a QR code to the donation page significantly increases how many people follow through.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"printing-it-so-it-does-not-look-homemade\">Printing it so it does not look homemade\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Paper is what separates a good program from a cheap one.\u003C/strong> Do not use standard 20 lb printer paper. Use 28 lb or 32 lb, or a light card stock if your printer takes it. A ream costs about $10 at any office supply store and it is the single highest-impact decision in this whole process.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>Matte finish reads as more dignified than gloss. Gloss makes photographs pop but also makes the whole thing look like a flyer.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Print settings:\u003C/strong>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Double sided, \u003Cstrong>flip on short edge\u003C/strong> (this is the one people get wrong - flip on long edge will print the inside upside down)\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Actual size, or 100%. Not "fit to page", which shrinks everything and throws off the fold.\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Highest quality setting\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>If your printer cannot do double sided, print page 1, put the stack back in, then print page 2. Test with one sheet first to work out which way up the paper goes.\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Print quantity:\u003C/strong> count expected attendance, add 25%. People take extras for relatives who could not come. Running out is worse than having leftovers, and leftovers get kept.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Folding:\u003C/strong> do them in small batches with a bone folder or the back of a spoon for a sharp crease. A ruler works. Doing 150 by hand takes about forty minutes and is a good job to give to someone who wants to help and does not know how.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>If you would rather not print at home,\u003C/strong> any copy shop will do this from the PDF. Expect roughly $0.50 to $1.50 per program in color on decent stock, which is still a fraction of funeral home pricing.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"a-few-things-worth-adding\">A few things worth adding\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>A QR code.\u003C/strong> A small code on the back panel that opens a page with more photographs, video, and space for people to leave messages. A program has room for one photo and 400 words. A page behind a QR code has room for everything else, including the people who could not travel.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>This is also how the program stops being a one-day object. People keep funeral programs in drawers for decades. A code on it means that in fifteen years a grandchild who finds it in a box has a way back to more than a name.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Blank space for notes.\u003C/strong> Some families leave the inside back panel partly blank so people can write a memory on it and hand it back at the reception. You end up with a hundred handwritten notes from people who knew them. It is one of the best things you can do and it costs nothing.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>A short poem or verse.\u003C/strong> The template has a space for it at the bottom of the life story panel. One is plenty.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"what-people-get-wrong\">What people get wrong\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Making it too long.\u003C/strong> A program is not a biography. Four panels, one photograph, 400 words maximum for the life story. If there is more to say, say it in the eulogy or put it online.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Waiting for everyone to approve the wording.\u003C/strong> With a large family, consensus is not achievable in three days. Someone has to write it and send it. Pick one person, let them write it, have one other person check the names and dates.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Fonts.\u003C/strong> Use one serif for the body and at most one other for headings. Avoid script fonts for anything longer than a name, because at 10pt on a folded sheet in a dim room, they are unreadable, and half the room is over 65.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Checking the dates.\u003C/strong> Read every date out loud to another person before printing 150 copies. Birth year, death year, service date, reception time. This is the most common error and the most expensive one.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"frequently-asked-questions\">Frequently asked questions\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>What size is a standard funeral program?\u003C/strong> 8.5 x 11 inches folded in half, giving a finished size of 5.5 x 8.5 inches with four panels. This is the industry standard and what this template uses. Trifold and booklet formats exist but are harder to print at home and rarely necessary.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>What should be included in a funeral program?\u003C/strong> At minimum: the person's name, birth and death dates, a photograph, service details, and the order of service. Most programs also include an obituary or life summary, pallbearers, survivors, a thank you message, and reception information.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>How many funeral programs should I print?\u003C/strong> Count your expected attendance and add 25 percent. People take extra copies for family who could not attend, and programs are frequently kept for years. Running out during the service is a common and avoidable problem.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>What paper should I use for funeral programs?\u003C/strong> 28 lb or 32 lb paper, or light card stock, in a matte finish. Standard 20 lb printer paper is the main reason home-printed programs look cheap. A ream costs around $10 and makes more difference than any design decision.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Can I write the obituary myself?\u003C/strong> Yes, and it is usually better than a funeral home template. Use three paragraphs: where they came from, what they did and were known for, then family and the ending. Include two or three specific details - a phrase they always used, something they made, a habit everyone recognized. Specificity is what people remember.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Is it cheaper to print funeral programs at home?\u003C/strong> Considerably. Funeral homes typically charge $2 to $6 per program. Home printing on good paper costs roughly $0.20 to $0.40 each. A copy shop sits between the two at around $0.50 to $1.50. For 120 programs that is a difference of several hundred dollars.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>What do you write on the back of a funeral program?\u003C/strong> A short acknowledgement thanking people for attending, reception details with the address, and donation information if the family prefers contributions to flowers. Some families also leave blank space for guests to write a memory and return it.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>The template is free to download, use, edit and print, including for a service you are being paid to organize. No attribution needed.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>Sources: The Funeral Program Site, standard sizes and formats; Funeral.com, Order of Service: what to include.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n",[6,9,12,15,18,21,24],{"id":7,"text":8},"what-the-template-is","What the template is",{"id":10,"text":11},"the-three-minute-version","The three-minute version",{"id":13,"text":14},"what-goes-in-each-section","What goes in each section",{"id":16,"text":17},"printing-it-so-it-does-not-look-homemade","Printing it so it does not look homemade",{"id":19,"text":20},"a-few-things-worth-adding","A few things worth adding",{"id":22,"text":23},"what-people-get-wrong","What people get wrong",{"id":25,"text":26},"frequently-asked-questions","Frequently asked questions",[28,31,34,37,40,43,46],{"question":29,"answer":30},"What size is a standard funeral program?","8.5 x 11 inches folded in half, giving a finished size of 5.5 x 8.5 inches with four panels. This is the industry standard and what this template uses. Trifold and booklet formats exist but are harder to print at home and rarely necessary.",{"question":32,"answer":33},"What should be included in a funeral program?","At minimum: the person's name, birth and death dates, a photograph, service details, and the order of service. Most programs also include an obituary or life summary, pallbearers, survivors, a thank you message, and reception information.",{"question":35,"answer":36},"How many funeral programs should I print?","Count your expected attendance and add 25 percent. People take extra copies for family who could not attend, and programs are frequently kept for years. Running out during the service is a common and avoidable problem.",{"question":38,"answer":39},"What paper should I use for funeral programs?","28 lb or 32 lb paper, or light card stock, in a matte finish. Standard 20 lb printer paper is the main reason home-printed programs look cheap. A ream costs around $10 and makes more difference than any design decision.",{"question":41,"answer":42},"Can I write the obituary myself?","Yes, and it is usually better than a funeral home template. Use three paragraphs: where they came from, what they did and were known for, then family and the ending. Include two or three specific details - a phrase they always used, something they made, a habit everyone recognized. Specificity is what people remember.",{"question":44,"answer":45},"Is it cheaper to print funeral programs at home?","Considerably. Funeral homes typically charge $2 to $6 per program. Home printing on good paper costs roughly $0.20 to $0.40 each. A copy shop sits between the two at around $0.50 to $1.50. For 120 programs that is a difference of several hundred dollars.",{"question":47,"answer":48},"What do you write on the back of a funeral program?","A short acknowledgement thanking people for attending, reception details with the address, and donation information if the family prefers contributions to flowers. Some families also leave blank space for guests to write a memory and return it.",1790296375812]