What to Give a Family Who Just Lost Someone
When a family loses someone, most of the "sympathy gifts" go straight to the closet. Here are the ones that don't.
What a grieving family keeps
- Food they didn't have to cook.
- A hand-written note in the mail.
- A recording of the person, or a recording made for the person.
Our three picks
- A Memorial Prayer - a short prayer in Jesus's voice for the family, with the person's name. Easiest to send early; no pictures, no music. Ready in minutes.
- A Memorial Film for Them - a short remembrance film drawn from the details the family shares with you. Played at a service or on the anniversary.
- A Message From Jesus - for the surviving spouse, parent or child, a short film in Jesus's voice speaking to them in the season they are in.
When to send it
- In the first days after the loss (prayer, not the film - the film takes decisions the family cannot yet make).
- The morning of the funeral.
- The anniversary - one month, one year.
- The day everyone else has stopped calling.
A short letter to leave with the gift
The love letter from Jesus is a plain, one-page reading that fits inside a sympathy card. Print it, write the surviving family member's name at the top by hand.