Grandparents are special people, so special many brides and grooms choose to honor them in their wedding. There are many ways to go about this from having grandparents serve in the wedding party to having ushers escort them into the wedding ceremony to writing a dedication to them in the wedding program. But, what do you do if your grandparents are no longer with you? How do you pay tribute to them?

Traditions are an important way to honor grandparents no longer living. Research your grandparents’ weddings. Are there any traditions you can carry on? Can you get married on the same date or in the same place? Can you recite a beloved poem or verse? If not, can you incorporate any of your grandparents’ wedding attire into yours? Following the “something old” tradition, perhaps you could wear your grandfather’s top hat or your grandmother’s veil. Perhaps you could use their cake topper or feature their wedding rings in your bouquet.

Photographs are a lovely way to remember grandparents no longer living. You can gather photos of your grandparents, perhaps of their wedding day, and include some in your wedding program. You can display the rest around the reception or use them as centerpieces for each table. You can even set up some photos of your grandparents on the favors table and donate to a charity in their honor in lieu of favors.

Flowers are another way to pay tribute to grandparents no longer living. You can arrange to leave a seat open at the ceremony for each grandparent you want to honor and place a flower in the seat. You can have your florist insert a special flower into your bouquet for each grandparent you want to honor or have them recreate your grandmother’s wedding bouquet altogether for you to carry or display. You can have your florist create centerpieces from your grandparents’ favorite flowers for use in the ceremony and the reception.

Music and food are also ideas. What were some of your grandparents’ favorite tunes? Perhaps you could include a few in the playlist for your reception. The same goes for food. What were some of your grandparents’ favorite foods? Perhaps you could include some of them in the dinner menu or pass them out as favors. If your grandmother adored chocolate-covered cherries, perhaps they could serve as your favors.

However you choose to remember your grandparents in your wedding, make sure you let guests know about it in the program. Write a dedication and make note of how you are paying tribute to your grandparents. That way, there will be no confusion as to why so many seats have been reserved at the church or so many daffodils scattered about at the reception.