There are several family situations in which only the Bride’s father would be hosting. We will explore a couple of these situations and hopefully give you some insight as to how to word your wedding invitation appropriately.
The Bride’s Mother is Deceased
If this is your situation, I’m truly sorry that the bride’s mother has passed away. Wording can be tricky here depending upon if the bride’s father has remarried or remained single. Or, if you want to include the bride’s mother’s name on the wedding invitation. Let’s explore some options.
Bride’s Father is Single
If the Bride’s father has remained single, then the wedding invitation wording is quite simple. In the wording, you would simply want to include his name and make sure he is doing the inviting. Something like this is pretty standard:
John Gothom
requests the honor of your presence
at the marriage of his daughter
Heather R. Gothom
to
Bobby J. Hillman
son of Kevin and Janet Hillman
on Saturday, the fourth of March
two thousand fifteen
at seven o’clock in the evening
Frederick’s Hall
344 1st Street
Egret, CO 65231
reception immediately following ceremony
If the Bride’s father has remained single, you may want to include the bride’s mother’s name on the wedding invitation as well. This can be a way of honoring the bride’s mother during your special day. Here is an example of how the wording would work in this situation.
John Gothom
requests the honor of your presence
at the marriage of
Heather R. Gothom
daughter of the late Susan Gothom and John Gothom
to
Bobby J. Hillman
son of Kevin and Janet Hillman
…
In the above example, the bride’s mother is mentioned by putting “the late” before her name. Notice though, the bride’s mother is not requesting the honor of your presence; in this example, only the father can do the actual inviting (or hosting).
Bride’s Father is Remarried
If the Bride’s mother is deceased and the bride’s father is remarried. There are a few options in regards to wedding invitation wording.
If the bride’s father is newly remarried and the bride’s step-mother had little or nothing to do with your upbringing, you may feel more comfortable not including her on the wedding invitation. However, when thinking about this, please be kind and considerate to your step-mother’s feelings and maybe even have a conversation with her and your father before you put anything in print.
If your chose to not include the bride’s step-mother’s name, then any of the above examples under “Bride’s Father is Single” would work in your situation.
If the bride and her step-mother have a good relationship, then the bride may want to include her on the wedding invitation. The wording would look like this:
John and Shelby Gothom
request the honor of your presence
at the marriage of his daughter
Heather R. Gothom
to
Bobby J. Hillman
…
If you would like to include the bride’s deceased mother’s name on the wedding invitation as well, it would look something like this:
John and Shelby Gothom
request the honor of your presence
at the marriage of
Heather R. Gothom
daughter of the late Susan Gothom and John Gothom
to
Bobby J. Hillman
son of Kevin and Janet Hillman
…
The Bride’s Mother and Father are Divorced
Here are some examples if the bride’s parents are divorced and only the bride’s father is hosting or paying for the wording.
Example if the Bride’s Father is Single
John Gothom
requests the honor of your presence
at the marriage of
Heather R. Gothom
daughter of Susan Gothom and John Gothom
to
Bobby J. Hillman
son of Kevin and Janet Hillman
…
In the above example, it clearly shows, that the father, John, is hosting of paying for the wedding, but also honors the mother, Susan, as well. When a father and mother are divorced, the wedding invitation wording etiquette is to list the mother’s name first followed by the father’s. If the parent’s are married, then the father’s name is listed first (as the groom’s parents are listed in the example above).
Example if the Bride’s Father is Remarried
If the bride’s father is remarried, the bride will need to make the decision to include her step-mother on the wedding invitation or not. Please do not take this decision lightly. Be considerate and kind towards the bride’s step-mother’s feelings. Maybe even have a conversation with her and the bride’s father about whether or not it would be appropriate to include her on the invitation. When making this decision, also be considerate of the bride’s mother’s feelings as well.
If you choose to not include your step-mother on the wedding invitation, the wording example from the above section would work for your situation.
If you choose to include your step-mother on the wedding invitation, the wording would look something like this:
John and Shelby Gothom
request the honor of your presence
at the marriage of
Heather R. Gothom
daughter of the Susan Gothom and John Gothom
to
Bobby J. Hillman
son of Kevin and Janet Hillman
…
Check out our wedding invitation wording page that displays a variety of wording options based on your family situation. Click on the appropriate square in the chart to see many examples that could work for your family situation.