Helping Grieving Families On Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day is a special day of the year to celebrate someone truly special. A mom is many things. She’s a chauffeur, a chef, a maid, a protector, a supporter, and so much more.
For some, Mother’s Day is a day to look forward to. My sister just had her first child this winter and this year marks a special day for her. It will be her first Mother’s Day as a mom, and I’m sure she’s excited. But for others, Mother’s Day can be difficult. I can still remember seeing how hard it was for my mom a couple years ago during the first Mother’s Day after my grandma had passed away.
Just like any other holiday, the weeks leading up to Mother’s Day are filled with television ads and radio commercials promoting Mother’s Day gifts and promotions. Younger children at schools will be making crafts to give their moms. Stores will be promoting their Mother’s Day weekend promotions to get mom that special gift. Flower stores will be offering special bouquets and arrangements to give to mom.
Do you notice a trend though? All of these promotions and activities are about celebrating the day with your Mom. But what if she’s not here anymore?
Spending Mother’s Day without your mom can be difficult, especially if this is the first year without her. One thing my mom and her siblings choose to do is go and have a picnic with my Grandma at the cemetery she’s buried at. That’s just the special thing they’ve found helps them cope and feel closer to their mom.
But that’s not the only way to pay tribute to your mom on Mother’s Day. As a funeral director, you’ve likely been asked by plenty of families what they can do to honor mom after she has passed away. Many funeral homes across the country will plan to hold Mother’s Day remembrance ceremonies this weekend.
If your firm is planning something special, here are some ideas to include in your remembrance service or offer as a suggestion to families who are grieving.
Mother’s Day Remembrance Service Ideas
Remembrance services are a great way to bring people together and honor those that have been lost. Here are a few easy ideas you can include in your firm’s Mother’s Day remembrance service.
- Ask guests to submit a photo of their mom before the service to create a slideshow or memorial tribute video to play during the service.
- Turn the remembrance service into a pot luck and encourage families to bring their mother’s favorite dish of food with them.
- Give flowers seed packets to plant at home to pay tribute to mom
- If you have a community garden, encourage families to bring a flower to plant in the garden in their mother’s memory
- Encourage people to make a donation to help other mothers in the community. Money raised can be donated to a local women’s shelter or other community group.
- Plan a balloon release where guests can write a letter to mom to be released with the balloons.
Remembering Your Mom On Mother’s Day
Some families might not feel comfortable attending a remembrance service and instead choose to stay home. If this is the case with some families that you know are grieving, here are a few suggestions you can offer them to honor mom on Mother’s Day.
- Look through old scrapbooks and photo albums to find picture of mom. Turn them into a special tribute scrapbook or keepsake.
- Collect some of your mom’s favorite recipes and create a cookbook to share with other family members.
- Plant flowers at her gravesite
- Write a letter to mom and share stories of how your life has been going lately.
- Spend the day doing your mom’s favorite activities with your family.
These are just a selection of ideas to help honor your mom on Mother’s Day. If you have any other ideas, make sure to share them with others in the comment section below.
From all of us at FrontRunner, happy Mother’s Day to those who are still with us and those who have passed.
Looking for more ways to personalize a service? Check out the Book of Memories™, the industry’s most advanced permanent online memorial tribute suite.
Tommy holds a Communications degree from Laurentian University and an Integrated Marketing Communications Graduate Certificate from St. Lawrence College. He is a Content Marketing Specialist at FrontRunner and focuses on producing engaging content that funeral homes can use to connect with families. In addition, Tommy crafts SEO content for clients and specializes in helping the general public connect with the death care industry as a whole.