Honoring Financial Contributors

mcgarci2

I want to do something special to honor my parents, my FI's parents, and those family members that contributed financially to our wedding.  Any ideas???  

p.s. 22 days omg!!!

Lizzieyounce

Maybe thank them at the reception if you or your FI are doing a thank you speech (not a long one, but a "thank you for coming and sharing our day and thanks to (insert names here) for all of your help.  I wouldn't mention money.

mcgarci2

I definitely won't be mentioning money and I will be thanking them at the reception, but I was thinking of a gift or something I could present them with or something.  Just not sure what.

LondonLisa

There is no way to publicly honour the people that gave money for your wedding without it sounding like a charity fundraiser. Say a quick thank you/ I love you in your toast (but definitely do NOT mention money).  Thank them privately, with a heartfelt letter and maybe take them out or cook them a nice thank you meal in your home. 

melbenso

Both my parents and FI's mom have financially contributed to our wedding in one way or another.  We are going to get them thank you gifts - probably gift certificates to nice restaurants we know they like so that they can go out for a nice meal.

STARMOON44

Send them a thank you note, make sure your photog gets a photo of you with each of them and frame it and send it to them, and invite them over to dinner if they are local.

CallaLily25

I think if you included it in a program or something, it would look like a fundraising event instead of a wedding. I think a personal, heartfelt gift would be the way to go without any public mention of money.

blabla89

Privately, you could take them to dinner, write them a nice card, give a gift or gift card, or a framed picture from your wedding day. All of those are appropriate ways to honor them and express appreciation.

On your wedding day, if one of you gives a speech then it's fine to thank them for all their help to make the wedding lovely (don't go into any more detail) but you shouldn't make any mention of who paid.

mcgarci2

I'm not having a program and I have enough sense not to mention money.  Does anyone have actual gift ideas?  These are very close family members that have done a lot for me and to me a thank you note is not enough in my opinion.  Thanks!

emmyg65

We sent both sets of parents heartfelt thank you letters and gift certificates to their favorite restaurants after the wedding. My parents were happy to have a night out, but they liked the letter a lot more.

wrigleyville

I plan to help with my niece's wedding. She and I are very close. If she were to thank me with a gift, I would appreciate a nice letter and a photo album of the professional wedding photos - not one that the photographer made, but one that she put together, with a couple of pictures of us (at the wedding) included. If you're crafty, you could even do it scrapbook-style and maybe start off with several pictures of you with these family members over the years. I'd love if she started off with pictures of us hanging out while she was a kid, then teenager, and then transition into the wedding photos. That would mean so much to me. Sorry... TK ate my paragraphs.

CallaLily25

Some gift ideas:

. Photo album with wedding photos or scrapbook

. Gift certificates to a favorite restaurant 

. If you know their decorating style, you could buy them some type of home decor (a nice bowl, etc.)

. Really nice wine glasses with a bottle of their favorite wine 

Jen4948

Send them a nice thank-you note, thank them at the reception and/or rehearsal dinner in a short speech, and give them nice photos of the wedding.  You can also give them, say, gift certificates to stores and restaurants they would like, bottles of wine, or something like that.

But as PPs have mentioned, honoring them for actual financial contributions wouldn't be appropriate because your wedding isn't a fundraiser.

Lizzieyounce

I think Wrigley's idea is awesome!

NYCMercedes

As they gave you money, I think anything cash related (gift card) is out. For the same reason, anything expensive is out. A thank you note is the best gift ever, especially as they are so rare anymore. A framed picture is all I would add to that.

vt&dt

We thanked our parents in a toast at the reception, and gave them a small gift at the RD (a nice frame that we ordered a pro pic for and gift certificate to a restaurant for dinner).  We also hosted a brunch for our out-of-town family the next morning.

But my dad said the best thing ever was getting to dance with me at the reception and walk me down the aisle.

My mom said the best thing ever was at the end of the night when I hugged her at the end of the night, she asked how it was and I said "perfect."

Your family is helping with the wedding because they want to - a small gift is a great idea, but the best thing you can do for them is show and tell them how much you enjoyed the day.

mcgarci2

This is great! Thank you guys for the awesome feedback!