By email or text, you announce a death to the second circle (colleagues, distant friends, neighbors, clubs) once close family have been told in person or by phone. The message takes a few lines: the full name of the person who died and how they were related to you, the date of the death without medical detail, the funeral if it is arranged, and any wishes from the family. A clear subject line and BCC take care of the rest. The templates below can be copied as they are; just change the names and dates.
Messages announcing a death, by recipient
For the order in which people are told, and for social media, see announcing a death on social media. The first circle is not written to: they get a phone call.
To colleagues and your employer
Email — subject: My mother, Margaret Walsh
Hi everyone,
My mother, Margaret Walsh, passed away on October 3. I'll be out of the office until October 10; Claire is covering my work until then.
The funeral will be on Thursday, October 8, at 2 p.m., at St. Patrick's Church. Anyone who would like to come is welcome.
Thank you for understanding, Paul
Text to a close colleague
It's Paul. My mom passed away yesterday. I'll be out all week and I'm emailing the team. Funeral is Thursday at 2 at St. Patrick's.
At work, give no cause and no circumstances. Naming the person covering your work saves a dozen emails while you are away.
To friends you rarely see
Email — subject: John Byrne (1951–2026)
Dear friends,
It is with great sadness that I let you know John died on October 3, at 75. So many of you shared his hikes and his Sunday lunches; I wanted you to hear it from us.
The funeral will be on Friday, October 9, at 10:30 a.m., at St. Mary's Church. In lieu of flowers, the family would welcome donations to the local hospice.
Helen
Text
Hi, it's Helen Byrne. John passed away this morning. The funeral is Friday at 10:30 at St. Mary's. Love, Helen
To extended family
Email — subject: Grandma Rose
Dear Sylvia and Mark,
Grandma Rose passed away during the night on Tuesday, at 94, at her nursing home. She was not in pain.
We haven't set the date for the funeral yet. I'll write again as soon as we know.
Love, Anne
To neighbors, a club, an association
Email — subject: Louis Garner, club member since 1998
Hello,
I am sorry to tell you that my father, Louis Garner, passed away on October 2. He had been a member of the club since 1998, and it meant a great deal to him.
The funeral will be private, for family only. Anyone who wishes can leave a note for the family.
Kind regards, Martha Garner
Text to a neighbor
Hello, it's Martha, Louis's daughter. Dad passed away on Tuesday. Thank you for everything you did for him these last months.
Depending on who died: the first line that changes
The rest of the message can be taken from the templates above; it is the opening that depends on who has died.
A parent, your mom or your dad:
My mother, Margaret, passed away this morning in the hospital, at 82.
A husband, wife or partner:
I have very hard news to share: Peter, my husband, died on Sunday.
A child. Write as little as possible, and often it is not the parent who writes: someone close sends the message on their behalf.
I'm writing for Claire and James. Their son Luke died on October 12. They are not able to reply for now; I'll let you know about the funeral.
What does not change, whoever has died: the first sentence says plainly that they died or passed away. "Sad news" or "we lost him" leaves the reader to guess, and that is exactly what a written message should spare them.
What the message should include
- The full name of the person who died, and how they were related to you if the reader did not know them.
- The date of the death. Never medical detail: if you want to share it, do so later, in person.
- The funeral: date, time, place. If it is not arranged yet, say so, and say a second message will follow.
- The family's wishes, if there are any: a private funeral, no flowers, donations to a charity in their name.
Three mistakes that make an email land badly
A vague subject line. "Sad news" or "Update" look like spam, or get overlooked. The subject carries the name of the person who died: it is the only thing the reader sees before opening.
Visible addresses. A message to twenty people goes as BCC. Otherwise everyone gets everyone's address, and the reply-alls go on for days.
One message for everyone. A colleague and a cousin do not need the same text. Two or three versions are enough, and they take ten minutes to write from the templates above.
The second message
When the funeral is not arranged at the time of the announcement, a second email uses the same subject line with "funeral" added: "John Byrne — funeral on October 9". It does not repeat the news; it gives the practical details. For those who could not come, a thank-you note follows a few weeks later: see funeral thank-you notes. An obituary published in the newspaper or online is a different text, public and more formal: see how to write an obituary, or fill in the obituary template.
One link instead of fifty replies
An announcement by email draws replies, and they keep arriving for weeks, scattered across everyone's inboxes. Some families add, at the end of the message, a link to an online memorial page in the person's name, such as one on forevr: anyone can leave a message or light a candle there without creating an account, and everything stays in one place.
The main guide to paying tribute gathers the other ways of marking these first days.
