Death Notice

Death notices are short, formal announcements of someone's passing that are usually posted in the local and/or hometown paper of the deceased.

Death notices, or death announcements, are the most common and simple way to announce that someone has passed. These are short paragraphs you pay to publish in local newspapers.

What is Included in a Death Notice?

Death notices usually include:

• Personal information like name and nicknames
• Where they died
• Date of death
• Funeral details
• Charity or donation fund details
• Anything else the family would like to add, including cause of death and surviving family members. 

What Does a Death Notice Look Like?

Death notices look like this:

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Example from the Chicago Tribune

Death Notice Template

Here's a simple death notice template you can use to make your own. The newspaper you work with may also have specific word counts you need to abide by.

[FIRST AND LAST NAME] age [AGE] of [RELEVANT CIY] passed away on [DATE OF DEATH]. [HE/SHE] is survived by her [RELEVANT FAMILY MEMBERS]. The funeral will be held [DATE & TIME OF FUNERAL] at [LOCATION] and all friends and family of [NAME]'s are invited to attend. Instead of bringing gifts, the family encourages everyone to donate to [RELEVANT CHARITY].

Are Death Notices and Obituaries the Same Thing?

Not exactly. The main differences are in length and intent. Death notices are short statements announcing a death and informing people of when and where a funeral will be held.

Obituaries are designed to paint a picture of someone's life and spirit, making them significantly longer than death announcements. These require more creative energy and are often written by journalists, professional writers, or family members who have a knack for writing.

Both death notices and obituaries are not required.

Are Death Notices and Notices to Creditors the Same Thing?

Death notices and notices to creditors are not the same thing, however it is possible to combine a death notice and a notice to creditor into a singular posting in a paper. A notice to creditors is a formal notice with legal ramifications that an executor or personal representative completes during the probate process. It is designed to announce the death of someone to anyone who may have been owed money by the person. This notice starts a clock (a statute of limitations) on how long these "creditors" have to file a claim for their debt. This claim is usually filed at the probate court in the jurisdiction where the person lived.

Mary's husband Jim passed away three days ago, and because she wants to have an open casket funeral she knows she needs to move relatively quickly. Instead of publishing an obituary, she decided to go with a death announcement in the local paper to let everyone who knew Jim know that the funeral would be held on this upcoming Saturday and to donate to a local food bank instead of bringing gifts. She looked up a reference online and used it to build her own death announcement before looking up the local newspaper's website. On the website, she found the submission form, input her notice, and paid the fee. Her death notice was published in the newspaper the following morning.