Honoring a friend’s life through a memorial website is a meaningful way to keep their memory alive and allow others to share in the celebration of their life.
A memorial website can serve as a platform for sharing memories, stories, and photos of the friend, as well as a space for others to offer their condolences and memories. It can also serve as a way for people to process their grief and find closure.
This article will explore how to create a memorial website for your friend. We will discuss what to write so that the memorial website becomes a meaningful remembrance of your friend!
Example of a Memorial Website for a Friend with Murial
To give you a picture of how a memorial website for a deceased friend could be, take a look at this example created with Murial: My Friend John Space
If you like that page as an example of a memorial website for your friend, we are going to take inspiration from it.
We will deconstruct the memorial website’s talking points so that you can adopt its structure and create your own!
Start by Gathering Photos of Your Friend
Before we start creating a memorial website for your friend, start gathering all of their photos.
Collecting all of their photos is a good first step because it will allow you to remember some of the past meaningful memories from your friend.
This will help you decide on what to write on the memorial website, and which parts of your friend’s life and journey to be highlighted!
You can collect and group all of them in your phone’s album so that it is easy to upload them all together later on.
What to Write
Give an Overview. Summarize Your Friend’s personality
To begin, it’s important to set the tone for the rest of the memorial website.
Grief can be overwhelming, so it’s best to share it in parts. Start by providing a brief summary of your friend, including an overview of their life and personality.
This will give visitors a sense of who your friend was and what made them special.
Share something meaningful about them that stands out to you. Once you’ve established that, you can delve deeper into their life and memories.
For example
Once Upon a Time, There Was a Man Named John Space
My friend John had a heart of gold. He was a kind and outgoing person, always the life of the party. He had a contagious smile and an infectious laugh that could light up any room. Everyone who knew him couldn’t help but feel happy and loved when they were around him.
Background story
Where were they from? How did you meet them? You can start with the beginning of your journey with your friend.
Share on their memorial website how your friendship started.
You can write more personal stories such as the reason why you guys clicked initially, and what drew you to your friend.
Remember a memorial website for a friend is storytelling. Let’s remember our loved ones in the best way we could, by sharing from the beginning to their end of life!
For example
We Met at a Live Music by The Beach Near Our Uni
John and I met in college, we were in the same major and ended up being in the same class. We quickly became friends, bonding over our shared love of music and our passion for making a difference in the world. We spent many late nights talking about our dreams and aspirations, and we always made each other laugh.
Funny or Unique Behaviors
Remember any quirks or amusing antics that your friend had and jot them down. Write about the times when they did something silly or made a humorous expression.
If you have pictures or videos that capture these moments, make sure to add them to the website.
Don’t shy away from being emotional and expressing your affection for your friend in your writing. It is his memorial website after all so let him be remembered well just as he was!
Example:
Nobody Can Hate Him. Just All Smiles Meeting Him!
John was a great friend to many, always there to lend a listening ear or a helping hand. He had a way of making people feel special and valued. He had a heart of gold and a soul that radiated positivity. He was always up for an adventure and loved to try new things.
Memorable moments
Moments such as the friend’s achievements or life milestones.
Try to remember the specific details that made these moments special to your friend.
For example, if your friend graduated from college, you could write about the pride they felt when they walked across the stage or the special people they invited to celebrate with them.
If your friend got married, you could write about the touching speeches that were given at the reception or the special dance they shared with their spouse.
If your friend had a child, you could write about the joy they felt when they held their baby for the first time or the special bond they formed with their child.
These are the memories that will be cherished by your friend’s loved ones and will provide comfort as they remember and celebrate your friend’s life.
For example
Smart and Hardworking Man
John Space had always been a hardworking student, but even he couldn’t believe it when he found out that he had graduated with cum laude honors. It was a moment he had worked so hard for, and it was all worth it to see the look of pride on his family and friends’ faces. John’s graduation with cum laude honors was a defining moment in his life. It was a testament to all of his hard work.
Your Friend’s Favorites
Include your friend’s favorite places to go, foods, favorite hobbies, or favorite movies. Someone’s favorite tells a lot about their character and personality.
You can write about the specific restaurants or cafes that your friend loved to go to, and any special dishes that they always ordered. If your friend had a favorite sports team or musician, you can mention that as well.
You can also share about any trips or vacations that you took together, and any special memories that you have from those experiences.
If your friend had a favorite hobby or pastime, such as playing a musical instrument or collecting a certain type of item, you can write about how they got into it and how it brought them joy.
Example:
John Loves All Things Spicy and Flavorful
He was a huge fan of Mexican cuisine, and his go-to dish was always a steaming hot plate of spicy chicken tacos. He would often frequent his favorite Mexican restaurant in town and order the same dish every time, raving about the perfectly seasoned chicken and the tangy salsa. He also loved trying new and exotic foods and was always game to try something new.
Your Parting Message
Writing a parting message can be emotional and overwhelming, so take the time you need to gather your thoughts and express them in a way that feels true to you.
A parting message should be a reflection of your relationship with the person who has passed away. Share personal anecdotes or memories that are meaningful to you. Keeping it personal is good!
You don’t have to use flowery language or poetic phrases. Write from the heart and let your emotions guide you. Remember that It’s okay to express your feelings.
Example:
John Was a Truly Unique and Special Person.
John was so much more than just a friend to me, he was like a brother. We shared countless memories together, from our early days as college buddies to our adventures traveling the world to the countless laughs and deep conversations we had over the years.
He had a contagious smile that could light up any room. He was always there for me and I will forever cherish the memories we made together.
Upload a Compilation of Videos About Your Friend
A video is a wonderful addition to enrich the memorial website. Start by picking some of your friend’s best videos. Look at their Instagram, TikTok, and Youtube channel if they had any.
Consider using a narrative structure for your video. Start by introducing your friend and then take the viewers on a journey through their life, highlighting some of their most memorable moments, funny quirks and their favorite things.
As you work on the video, keep in mind that it should be a reflection of your friend’s personality and the relationship you had with them. Use a mix of footage, photos, and audio recordings.
Be sure to keep the video short, sweet, and to the point.
Ask Others to Share Tributes and Memories
Most memorial websites nowadays have a feature in which visitors can leave a comment or tribute on the memorial website.
Invite your friends, or the deceased friend’s family to share their tributes! Get people to comment and post their memories of your friend.
Once it’s populated with meaningful comments, you could even surprise your deceased friend’s mom and dad by showing how much their son or daughter is loved by many people.
In Murial, we have Loveboard and Lovekit as features to express your love. Share the page with your social media accounts and friends. Ask them to share enrich your friend’s memorial page by sharing their memories!
Don’t Forget to Add Music
Pick music that is fitting to your friend’s personality, or the message you want to convey on the page. Usually, if you know your friend’s favorite music, that’ll be a great pick!
You don’t have to do this alone. Ask any other friend who would like to join to create the memorial website together to contribute! Enrich your friend’s page with meaningful stories that remember him or her well.
End of Article
We hope this article helped you to get inspired and create a memorial website for your friend!
Honoring the life of a deceased friend is an important way to process grief and remember the person who was a significant part of our lives. A memorial website is a meaningful way to do this, as it allows us to share our memories and celebrate the life of our friend.
It’s a space for others who knew and loved our friend to share their own memories and offer condolences. A place for family and friends to come together and remember the person who was so important to us!