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Short newspaper obituary template
Many newspapers charge by the line or the word, so a short notice can be a practical choice. This template keeps to the essentials: who, when, a line about their life, who is left, and the service. The word count updates as you type, so you can check it against what the paper allows.
Take your time. What you type and the photos you add stay on your device. We never receive them. You can close the page whenever you need to.
Write yours
Your text
Highlighted [brackets] mark a needed detail that is still blank.
The plain template
The same template with every blank showing. Copy it into any document and replace each [bracketed] part.
[full name], [age], of [hometown or where they lived], died on [date of death], [how or where they passed].
Born in [place of birth], to [parents' names]. They worked as [work or career].
They are survived by [survived by].
A service will be held at [service place] on [service date and time].
Donations may be made to [donations or flowers].
An example made-up people and details
Eleanor Grace Pritchard, 92, of Brookfield, died on May 5, 2026, peacefully.
Born in Leeds, England, to Doris and Arthur Greaves. She worked as a seamstress and a church organist.
She is survived by her daughter, Susan; her son, Peter; and six grandchildren.
A service will be held at St. Mark's Church on Thursday, May 14, at 10 a.m.
Donations may be made to St. Mark's Music Fund.
A few gentle notes
- Ask the newspaper for its length and price rules before you finalise the text. Some count words and others count lines.
- Put the most important details first: name, date and service. If you need to cut, cut from the end.
- A short notice and a longer remembrance can live side by side: a short one for the paper and a longer one for the service program or a family page.
- Check spellings of every name and every date before you submit it.
- Before sharing online, consider leaving out home addresses, full birth dates, a mother’s maiden name, and when the home will be empty.
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