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I love seeing how creatively people can say "died." Most people say "died" or "passed away" in obits at my paper. The best one we got was, "went to her Heavenly feast to be reunited with the Lord Almighty Jesus, son of God."

It's up to the family and/or the funeral home. Most of the ones that I do include it. It's a personal thing, not a requirement. The reason we don't make it a requirement is because if the person dies by suicide, we don't want to force the family to include that information.

Our best obits are WWII veterans because they are usually filled with little historical tidbits. I once did an obituary for a guy who served under Gen. MacArthur. I also did an obit for someone who was part of the Caterpillar's Club. The most interesting obit I did was a double obit for a married couple who both served in WWII - I think he was Marines and she was Air Force, but I don't remember perfectly - and died a week apart. Their obit was very long but it told a beautiful story of their life together. Brought me to tears.

Ohhhhhh yes! I don't read obits on vacation (I try to forget about work), but I do critique obits written by people I know. And even people I don't know. People in my area are really awful writers.

Jan. 1, 1950 - March 30, 2013

John Done

John Doe, 63, of New York, New York, died Saturday, March 30, 2013.

John was born Jan. 1, 1950, to Jack and Jill Doe.

John was a private man, but he was very well known.

His survivors include his wife, Jane Doe; his children Jim and Jen Doe; his brother Jeff Doe; and his dog, Fido.

His parents preceded him in death.

Visitation is from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, April 1, 2013, at End Of The Road Funeral Home, 123 Main St., New York, New York. Funeral services are at 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 2, 2013, at the funeral home.