Wedding Rehearsal Dinner Speeches

From LoveToKnow Weddings

Writing wedding rehearsal dinner speeches should be easy because they come from the heart to your friends, family, and especially your son and his new wife to be.

Speak from the heart.

Father of the Groom Please Stand Up

The hard part is over because your son asked the woman of his dreams for her hand in marriage and she said yes. All the planning is finished and the big day is looming ever so quickly. As the father of the bride it is your job to give the rehearsal dinner speech so now it’s time to start putting pen to paper to create something to thank those that worked hard to make the wedding happen.

Traditionally it is the father of the groom that gives the rehearsal dinner toast speech since the rehearsal dinner is held (and paid for) by you. If the father is not available then the mother of the groom or an uncle, grandfather, or other close immediate family member would give it. The dinner is traditionally held the night before the wedding for the key players, meaning the groom and the bride along with their families and the wedding party.

Why Write it Yourself

Granted, there are resources online that you can use to put together wedding rehearsal dinner speeches but why do that when you should be writing it yourself? Your son is the one getting married and it is an incredibly important day for him, his wife to be, and you and your wife as his parents. There are many people who have helped to move this day forward from friends and relatives to hired help, and this speech can be a way for you to let them know just how you feel about them and their support.

Writing Wedding Rehearsal Dinner Speeches

It’s not hard to write one of these speeches. All you need to do is speak from the heart and remember several things that you need to get across:

  • Make sure to introduce yourself because not everyone may know you.
  • Let every person know how pleased you are that your son has found a beautiful and wonderful woman to marry and how happy you are for the upcoming wedding.
  • Rehearsal dinners are an informal gathering to kind of just go over the final seating, break some bread, and have a good time, so keep that in mind when writing the speech.
  • Time the speech and try to keep it less than 4 minutes long.
  • Practice the speech often prior to giving it.
  • Be natural and make the speech sound like you mean it because it is not fun to sound like a robot.
  • Just relax and get comfortable.
  • Begin your speech with a quote about marriage or a personal anecdote.
  • End your speech with a blessing, congratulations, and thanks to everyone who has supported the happy couple.

Your speech can be very light-hearted, so simply have fun with what you say. Feel free to use quotes and anecdotes. There are many great books that you can find in the library known as "monologue prose" – primarily made for actors for auditions they be useful to you by supplying you with some very nice words to say.

Just a Few Ideas

Knowing what to say in a speech can be hard – so why worry about quotes and blessings when you have your own feelings to worry about. Below are several examples of quotes on marriage as well as a few blessings.

About Marriage

The bride and groom want to know how you feel so opening your speech with a quote directed at them for their big day is a good way to do that.

Cheers!
  • "Often the difference between a successful marriage and a mediocre one consists of leaving about three or four things a day unsaid." by Harlan Miller
  • "Marriage is a lottery in which men stake their liberty and women their happiness." by Madame de Rieux
  • "Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, and the oak tree and cyprus grow not in each other's shadow." by Kahlil Gibran

A Few Blessings

Don't allow the speech to drag on. The middle part was the best, and now you need to close it up. A good blessing is the best way to do this. Following are several old Irish blessings:

  • "May you both live as long as you want, and never want as long as you live."
  • "May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings, slow to make enemies, and quick to make friends."
  • "As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way.”

Wedding rehearsal dinner speeches can be nerve-wracking, but if you remember just why everyone is gathered to celebrate and you speak from your heart, you will be able to express your joy and love for your son and his soon-to-be wife without any difficulty.

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