Special Recognition during ceremony

jma1983

My future hubby and I both have fathers that were absent for most of our lives. He hasn't seen his dad since he was 6. My dad left when I was 8 and we started rebuilding our relationship when I was 21. (Just 5 years ago). My dad will be walking me down the aisle and Ryan's dad won't even be invited. In the absence of our fathers we both had people that stepped up to the plate as father figures for us. For Ryan it was his uncle and for me it was my grandpa. We want to recognize these people as being important in our lives. So, after we light the unity candle, we are going to read a poem and a little blurb addressing the importance of the role that these 2 men played in our lives. And, we are going to present them with small gifts. We want to get something engraved for each of them and would like to keep the price around $50 or less for each. Ryan's mom suggested a pocket watch from Things Remembered. Any other ideas? I'm at a complete loss! I'm not totally opposed to the pocket watch...it's just that neither of the men seem to be the pocket watch type of people. Suggestions?

jma1983

My grandpa is a hunter and sports enthusiast. Joe is a sports enthusiast. They both are drinkers...maybe an engraved stein? Is that really an apporpriate gift to give in church?

jma1983

He just watches. Pocket knife is a GREAT idea!!!

Catwoman708

Are you planning on doing a tribute to the uncle and grandpa during your wedding ceremony? Because that would kind of be calling attention to the reason they "stepped up to the plate". That might be seen as a dig or slight to the bio dads, and cause some awkwardness for your dad that will be there, or other family members. I think you can thank them for their role in your upbringing and present them with a gift in person, or another occasion, like the rehearsal dinner instead of in front of everyone. Especially because it might be an emotional moment, and most men do not like to show their emotions in public. You can make a toast to them at the reception, mention them in the program, or just tell them in person how much they mean to you. More public does not equal more special.

hollieheidi

I agree with pp about gifting during the ceremony.  I like the poem idea, but I think the gifting might be better the night before at the rehearsal dinner or during the reception. How about engraved photo of favorite team or bat or signed ball? Autographed helmet?  You can contact most teams public relations dept. and get autographed photos for free or for a small fee...I've done it with NFL teams.

kathjack95

Like others have said, I wouldn't do this at the ceremony. Gift giving and special acknowledgments usually happen at either a rehearsal dinner or the reception.