It may feel like it was just yesterday when you were playing silly with your little boy and yet here he stands now ready to start a family of his own, and it even feels so cliché to even be thinking of it that way.
Now that he’s a grown man taking a big step in his life, you want to make a mark that touches his heart and will remember you always on this special day.
Or maybe you’re here looking for something that will also play with your audience emotions: from tears to laughter and the “awwws…” in between?
Well, let me say that you are definitely in the right place to help you craft the perfect Father The Groom speech.
So here are some important things to help you form a wonderful speech or toast for your son on his big day.
Before You Write Your Father Of The Groom Speech, Remember This…
Before you get to forming or writing your speech here are some important things to remember:
1. Time Limit.
A good wedding coordinator will let you know how much time you’re allotted for your speech.
If you haven’t been informed of this yet, perhaps try and get hold of this information, but if you can’t- don’t worry, read on further for our handy pointers.
Even without the advice of a good coordinator though, remember that long speeches tend to bore people out.
Just try thinking about you yourself having to listen to someone else talk about their own personal life and feelings for 30minutes. With that in mind, how long will you be able to tolerate it?
Ideally, you’ll want to keep it within 5 minutes up to 7 minutes at most. This is even if you’re given 15 minutes to talk.
You’d lose your audience attention any more than that and you also open yourself for more opportunity to say something inappropriate when you speak longer.
2. Remember Who This Is About
Some fathers get lost in talking about their own experience, wedding or opinions.
Remember that this isn’t about you and your father of the groom speech is not the venue for you to expound on that. You will have every chance to chat personally with other guests.
Also remember that during this occasion, the family, friends and relatives of your son’s bride will also be there. So you will want to represent him well to them.
Your speech should highlight the groom, the bride and what you can of their relationship.
3. Take A Breath
It’s an emotional day for everyone. So if you feel your nerves creeping up take a deep breath.
Do it once more before taking the mic, and feel free to take pauses as you speak.
4. Language & Humor
If you’re planning to be a funny dad for your speech, be conscious about using anything that could be offensive culturally or religiously.
And while it can seem funny to you thinking about someone’s outfit being inappropriate, not having proper looks, or having silly actions or speech, it won’t be funny for everyone, especially the people you will be embarrassing as you talk about them.
This isn’t the venue for any pessimistic points of view, criticism of any form or sarcastic expressions of disappointment.
A wedding is a celebration of a new beginning, so should be kept happy, light and bright so as not to ruin the mood.
And finally, while funny father of the groom speeches are great, the truth is not everyone can be funny.
So if you don’t feel like you are a good comedian, you don’t have to force it, sometimes it’s just really a line or 2 you need to get a good laugh.
Proper Format To A Father Of The Groom Speech
Before thinking about all the things you want to say, it is best to start with a format.
Following a format for your speech allows you to be more fluid in delivery and helps you keep a coherent thought process as you form and write down your speech.
Sometimes, just keeping this in mind is enough for you to even give an impromptu speech vs. a practiced one.
You could opt to stick to something more quick and formal or maybe something that draws out the emotions of the occasion.
Being structured with your thoughts also helps you control your speech, and avoid getting lost in other thoughts or emotions.
You can follow this simple format for your father of the groom speech and cover them in general for a quick formal and perfectly executed speech:
- Introducing your self
- Greeting & thanking the guests
- Highlighting the Groom
- Highlighting the Bride
- Giving advice to the newly weds
- Showing appreciation for all who helped
- Proposing a toast
Some specifics you can cover under each part could include:
-
Introducing your self
- Just a short sentence or 2
- It’s a good part for a funny line or 2 like talking about a funny incident you encountered in the venue or something funny about how you were preparing for the speech
-
Greeting & thanking the guests for their presences
- Greeting the Bride’s Family & Relatives first to honor them
- Greeting Your side of the family & friends
- Acknowledging the presence of any special guests
- Greeting the couple’s friends
-
Highlighting the Groom
- This is often the best part to inject some humor.
- How proud you are of your son – this is often the opportunity to get some of the “awws…” you’d like to hear.
- Any single or 2 of his achievements you’d like to highlight
- And any one or two of the following:
- A funny or touching memory of your son in his younger years
- A funny or special moment about your son’s courtship for his bride
- Any recent special or funny event related to the wedding preparation related to your son that you can share
-
Highlighting the Bride
- Remember when she was first introduced to you, nice things about her
- Thank her for accepting your son into her life
- Welcome her to the family
- Welcome her family into yours and express your appreciation of the union of your two families.
-
Giving advice to the newly weds
- There are some who inject some humour into this part though not quite easy but may be just one funny line.
- Doesn’t have to be specific, can be general advice like:
- Talking about love and loving each other
- Commitment
- Can be a list of 3 or 4 things that are easy to remember to keep their love alive
- Can be about sharing your mistakes and lessons you’ve learned
-
Showing appreciation for all who helped
- Thanking friends and family who helped in the celebration
- Include thanking your wife, the entourage, catering and event staff and the photo-video crew
- For humour, some give specific thanks to the bartenders too
-
Proposing a toast
- A good ending to your speech could be:
- A sentimental or funny quote
- A short sentimental composition, lyric or poem
- Include your wishes for the newly-weds and express your blessing of their union
- Invite guests to join you for a toast
- A good ending to your speech could be:
With this guide, all you need now is to supply your own lines and stories in for each part.
Keeping it sincere and true is most important. Include only what you would be comfortable saying and keep in mind that this is a celebration for this new chapter in your son’s life.
And you should do great in delivering a high quality father of groom speech for your son, his bride and their guests, that will enjoy and remember it far into the future.
If You Want Something Even More Special For Your Son…
If you want to really take your speech to that next level and virtually guarantee that you will be outstanding, I recommend that you check out the follow resource:
(Note: When you click the link, you’ll need to select “Father Of The Groom” for the appropriate resource.)