If you are writing an obituary for your wife, you are attempting to do in three hundred words what you could not do in a lifetime of anniversaries: say what she meant. Be gentle with yourself. The goal is not a perfect piece of writing — it is a true one, and you are the person alive best qualified to write it.
Husbands often discover, pen in hand, just how much of the family's life ran through her: the birthdays remembered, the friendships tended, the household held together, the careers balanced. Name it. "She kept every promise, every appointment, and every one of us on time for twenty-nine years" honors work the world too often leaves out of obituaries. If she also had a career, give it full weight — her years of work deserve the same detail a man's would traditionally get.
Include her maiden name, both for the friends who knew her by it and for the grandchildren who will one day trace her story. If she was the family's letter-writer, cook, gardener, or the one who made holidays happen, one specific image of that will outlive any general praise. And if grief has narrowed the words down to almost nothing, the short form is honorable: who she was, whom she loved, who survives her, and where to gather.
Below are three templates — traditional, brief for the newspaper, and a personal version in a husband's voice. Copy the one that fits and change every word you need to. If starting from a blank is too hard this week, the guided writer below will compose a full draft from your answers, privately, in your browser, at no cost.
Fill-in-the-blank templates
Copy a template, then replace each [bracketed detail] with your own. Cut anything that doesn’t fit — these are starting points, not rules.
Traditional obituary for a wife
[Full Name] ([Maiden Name]), [Age], of [City, State], passed away on [Date], with her husband of [Number] years by her side.
She was born [Birth Date] in [Birthplace] to [Parents' Names]. She married [Husband's Name] on [Wedding Date], and together they raised [Number] children in [City]. She worked as a [Occupation] for [Number] years, and she was the kind of [wife, mother, friend] who [specific trait — e.g., "remembered everyone's birthday and never once missed a school play"].
She is survived by her husband, [Name]; her children, [Names, with spouses in parentheses]; her grandchildren, [Names or number]; and her [siblings / extended family]. She was preceded in death by [Names and relationships].
A service celebrating her life will be held at [Time] on [Date] at [Location]. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to [Charity].
Short newspaper obituary for a wife
[Last Name], [First Name] ([Maiden Name]), [Age], of [City], died [Date]. Cherished wife of [Husband's Name] for [Number] years; loving mother of [Children's Names]; grandmother of [Number]. [One phrase — her work or what she loved.] Services [Time], [Date], [Location]. Memorials to [Charity].
From her husband — a personal obituary
My wife, [Full Name], passed away on [Date]. We were married [Number] years, and I am writing this the way she would have wanted: honestly, and without too much fuss about her.
She was [qualities — e.g., "the smartest person in every room and the last to say so"]. She loved [what she loved — e.g., "her students, her sisters, bad detective novels, and our Saturday drives with no destination"]. She built our family's whole world — [Children's Names] and I lived in it gratefully.
She leaves behind her husband, who was lucky; our children, [Names]; and grandchildren who called her [Grandma name].
Join us at [Time] on [Date] at [Location]. She asked that you make a donation to [Charity] instead of sending flowers — and she meant it.
Tips for writing a wife’s obituary
Include her maiden name — friends from every era of her life will look for it.
Give her career its full weight, and name the invisible work too.
One image of her in her element — kitchen, garden, classroom, courtroom — will outlast adjectives.
"Wife of [Name] for [N] years" or "partner of [Name]" — use the words that were true.
Let one of her friends read the draft; they will remember things you can't reach today.
Or let the writer compose it for you
The guided writer below is pre-filled with fictional sample details so you can see how it works — replace them with your wife’s. It composes a complete obituary in your browser, free and private.
Write a wife's obituary
Answer what you can and skip what you can’t — every field is optional. Composed entirely in your browser; nothing you type is uploaded.