How to Plan a Celebration of Life: A Step-by-Step Guide (2026)
Planning a celebration of life can feel like a lot, especially when you are grieving. There are decisions to make, people to contact, and details you may never have had to think about before. You do not have to figure it all out at once.
This step-by-step guide to planning a celebration of life will help you find a place to begin. Take what is useful, leave what is not, and move at a pace that feels right for your family.
Step 1: Begin with the person you are honouring
Before thinking about venues or schedules, take a little time to think about them. What made them feel most like themselves? Where were they happiest? What music did they play, what food did they love, and what stories do people always tell about them?
There is no set format for a celebration of life. It might be a quiet morning with coffee and a few close friends, or an afternoon filled with music, food, and stories. What matters is that the gathering feels true to the person you are remembering.
Often, the smallest details make a day feel personal. A memory table might hold the watch they always wore, a favourite book, family photographs, or something from a hobby they loved. You can begin with just a few ideas. They will help guide the decisions that follow.
Step 2: Give the gathering a simple shape
You do not need a complete plan yet. It can help to start with four questions:
Where might people gather?
What food or refreshments would feel right?
How would you like to share memories?
Who can look after the details on the day?
That may be enough to begin. Flowers, printed programs, décor, and other touches can come later if they feel meaningful to you.
A few possibilities to consider:
The place: A family home, restaurant, community space, park, or somewhere that mattered to them.
The food: A catered meal, restaurant gathering, potluck, coffee and pastries, or a favourite dish.
The memories: Stories, photographs, slideshow, a playlist, a memory table, or time for guests to talk.
The day itself: A trusted friend, family member, or professional coordinator who can keep things moving and answer questions.
You can change your mind as the plan takes shape. For now, a starting point is enough.
This is a no obligation call with the Kindred team
Step 3: Choose a time that works for your family
There is no required timeline for holding a celebration of life. Some families want to gather soon after a death. Others need more time to travel, collect photographs, or simply catch their breath.
If you are hoping to gather soon, a smaller event may be easier to arrange. If close family and friends need to travel, you may want to check their availability before choosing a date. Some families hold a small gathering now and a larger celebration later.
The right time is the one that works for the people closest to the loss. You are allowed to give yourselves time.
Step 4: Find a place that feels right
The place you choose helps set the tone. Think about where the person you are honouring would have felt comfortable, as well as what will be manageable for your family and guests.
Families in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland often consider:
A restaurant with a private room. Food and service are already part of the space, which can make planning easier. Ask about music, speeches, and audiovisual equipment if you will need them.
A community or recreation centre. These spaces can offer flexibility for larger gatherings and outside catering. Ask what equipment is included and how much setup time is available.
A park or outdoor space. This may feel especially fitting for someone who loved being outside. Have a weather plan, and check with the city event requirements for permits for more than 50 people in Vancouver parks may require a special events permit from the Park Board; smaller gatherings generally do not.
A family home. A familiar setting can be deeply comforting. Think through seating, parking, food, setup, and cleanup so those jobs do not all fall to the family.
A hotel or private event space. These can work well for a larger group. Ask about catering, parking, accessibility, and the time allowed for setup and teardown.
A place that meant something to them. It could be a gallery, a club, or another space connected to their life. It is worth asking whether a gathering there is possible.
When you contact a venue, ask about capacity, accessibility, catering, audiovisual needs, parking, and the full time you will have in the space. Those answers will make the next decisions easier.
Step 5: Decide how you would like to share memories
This is often the most meaningful part of a celebration of life, and there are many ways to do it. You do not need to include everything. One or two thoughtful choices can say a great deal.
A slideshow can bring together photographs from different parts of their life, perhaps set to music they loved. Start asking family and friends for photos early, and make sure someone can run the slideshow on the day.
Shared stories may be planned in advance or offered through an open microphone. If you invite guests to speak, ask someone to guide that part of the gathering gently.
A memory table gives guests a place to pause and connect through photographs and familiar objects. It might include a recipe card in their handwriting, a favourite jersey, or something they carried every day.
A guest book or memory cards give people a quieter way to share a story or leave a note for the family.
A printed program can help guests follow the gathering and keep a photograph, reading, or small remembrance afterward. Allow time for writing, design, review, and printing.
A playlist can fill the room with music that reminds everyone of them. Sometimes that is all you need.
Choose the things that feel like them. There is no need to fill every moment.
Step 6: Plan the food and a gentle flow for the day
Food gives people a reason to stay, sit together, and talk. It can be simple or elaborate. The best choice depends on the gathering, the venue, and how much your family wants to take on.
A caterer can manage the food and service. A restaurant can take care of much of it for you. A potluck or home-cooked meal can feel wonderfully personal, provided someone coordinates it and the work is shared.
It also helps to sketch out the day, even if you want it to feel informal. For example:
Guests arrive and have time to settle in.
Someone offers a welcome.
Speakers, music, or a slideshow help share memories.
Guests spend time together over food.
Someone offers a closing thought or thank-you.
The gathering does not need to follow a strict schedule. A loose plan simply helps everyone know what is happening, and lets the people supporting you know when they are needed.
Step 7: Choose someone to look after the day
Even a simple gathering has details that need attention. Someone may need to meet the caterer, test the microphone, cue a slideshow, answer questions, or let speakers know when it is their turn.
Think about who can comfortably take on that role. It might be a friend, a family member, or a professional coordinator. The person welcoming guests or sharing a tribute does not also have to manage everything behind the scenes.
If you would like support, our celebration of life planning team works with families across Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. We can help with the planning, coordinate the people and details involved, and look after the day so you can be present with those you love.
Whoever takes this on, let them know exactly what you need. It is easier for someone to help when the role has been clearly offered to them.
Step 8: The details that tend to be forgotten
Even carefully planned events have things that fall through. Here are the ones that come up most often.
Sourcing photos for the slideshow. Old family photos held by different relatives need to be collected, scanned or digitised, and gathered in one place. Start earlier than feels necessary.
Briefing speakers in advance. If people are sharing memories or giving remarks, let them know how long they have and roughly when in the program they will speak. It reduces anxiety and keeps the day from running long.
Someone to welcome guests at the door. Not just a greeter, but a person who can direct people to the memory table, answer questions, and make guests that arrive feel settled.
A plan for ashes, if they will be present. Who carries them? Where should they rest during the event? What happens to them afterward? This is a tender thing to leave on the day of. Best to have a plan ready.
Ordering printed materials early enough. Programs and memory cards need to be designed, reviewed, and printed. Give yourself at least a week, but preferably more.
Who is thanking guests as they leave. A warm goodbye can be very meaningful. Assign it to someone specific so it does not get lost in the cleanup.
Post-event thank-you notes. The guest list comes in handy post-event. Decide early, how thank-yous will be handled, even if you do them weeks after the event.
You do not have to carry this list alone. Share it with the people who have offered to help.
Step 9: Think about what happens after
When the gathering ends, there is still work to do. The venue needs to be returned to the condition you found it. Someone needs to collect the memory table items, the photographs, the objects that belonged to them, coordinate with the caterer for pickup, and make sure nothing that matters gets left behind.
These tasks have a way of falling to the most exhausted person in the room unless they are assigned in advance. Before the day, make a short list: who is handling cleanup, who is returning personal items, who is managing vendor pickup. A few minutes of planning now protects the people you love most from carrying more than they should.
Some families also find it helpful to plan a smaller, quieter gathering for a later time. The celebration of life is for everyone who loved the person. A quieter follow-up, a few weeks later, is for the people closest to the loss. Both gatherings can serve different needs at the right times.
Afterward, give yourselves room to rest. There is no deadline for thank-you notes or for deciding what to do with the items from the gathering. Some families also choose to spend quiet time together again later, in whatever way feels right.
Frequently Asked Questions
How soon after death should you plan a celebration of life?
There is no standard timeline, however, some families hold a celebration of life within two weeks because coming together quickly helps them. Others wait four to six weeks to give out-of-town relatives time to travel. The timing should reflect what the family needs. If the gathering needs to be small and soon, that is valid. If it needs to wait, that is valid too.
Who should lead or host the celebration of life?
A host is often a family member or close friend who can open the gathering and set a welcoming tone. The person who manages the logistics of the day should ideally be someone one step removed from the deepest grief, so the family can be fully present. These two roles are not the same, and it helps to name them separately.
What is the typical order of a celebration of life?
Most celebrations of life follow a loose sequence: guests arrive and greet each other, someone opens the gathering with a welcome, memories are shared through speakers or a slideshow or both, guests gather over food with time to talk, and the day closes with a thank-you. There is no strict format. The order should serve the family and the person being honoured.
Can you hold a celebration of life at home?
Yes. A home gathering can be the most intimate and personal option. It also puts the setup, catering, and cleanup on the family. If you choose this, assign specific tasks to specific people before the day so the work is shared.
Do I need a professional coordinator to plan a celebration of life?
Not necessarily. Many families plan and run their own gatherings with the help of friends and relatives. A coordinator is most valuable when the logistics are complex, when the family is deeply in grief and does not have someone available to run the day, or when you simply want to be fully present without managing the details.
A gentle place to start
We know all of this can be a lot to hold, and you do not need to have it sorted today.
Start with one question: who was this person, and what would feel like them? The decisions can then follow the answers to that question.
If you are carrying grief alongside the planning and would like to speak with someone, the BC Bereavement Helpline offers free, grief-specific support by phone and email across BC. The Canadian Virtual Hospice also has resources written for people navigating loss.
We are Leah and Courtenay, the mother-and-daughter team behind kindred memorials. We planned our own father and grandfather’s celebration of life while grieving him. We know how much it can mean to have someone beside you through the practical details. Whenever you are ready, we are here to help.