First Father's Day Without Dad: Gifts and Ways to Remember

The first Father's Day without your dad can be harder than you expect, because the whole week is built around him: the cards in every store, the cookout invitations, the game on TV. It helps to decide ahead of time how you will spend it. These 12 ideas work whether you are grieving him yourself or looking for a gift for a friend, a sibling or your mom. If you want one keepsake that holds his jokes and his sayings, a song made from his stories is a good place to start.

Listen to a song made in memory of a loved one

This one was made for another family. Yours would carry his name and your stories.

12 gifts and ways to remember dad on Father's Day

1. Fire up his grill. Cook his burgers his way, with the seasoning he swore by, and invite the people he would have invited.
2. His sauce, bottled for the family. Make a batch of his barbecue sauce or chili from his recipe, pour it into jars and print labels with his name. Usually $20 to $40 for jars and labels.
3. The game, his way. Watch his team from his chair, with the snacks he always had. Or go to the ballpark he took you to as a kid.
4. A song about him ($39.90). You share his name, his jokes and the advice he gave on repeat, and Songbond turns them into an original song. Play it on the drive to his resting place, or at the family cookout.
5. A drive in his car. If the family still has his truck or car, take it out on the back road he liked, with the windows down and his station on the radio.
6. A visit with his drink. Take his brand of beer or his thermos of coffee to his grave, and raise it to him.
7. A morning of his hobby. A round of golf, a few hours fishing, an early trip to the hardware store. Go with someone who will not mind if you go quiet.
8. A youth team sponsored in his name. Local Little League and soccer clubs often look for sponsors for jerseys or a banner. Costs vary, often $100 to $500.
9. A photo of him holding you as a baby. Find it, frame it and put it on your desk. Usually $20 to $40 to frame.
10. His shirt, worn to the cookout. The flannel or the old team shirt, washed and worn for the day. It costs nothing and feels like a hug.
11. A toast in his words. At dinner, raise a glass and say the toast he always gave, word for word, even the corny part.
12. A card for your mom or his parents. They are grieving him too, and Father's Day is hard for them in a different way. A card that says “I know you miss him too” means more than it seems.

How to choose for the first Father's Day

Think about how your dad showed love. If it was through doing, like fixing, cooking or coaching, mark the day by doing his thing. If it was through words or humor, collect his stories and sayings. If you are buying for someone else, choose something small that uses his name.

• If he was a hands-on dad: the grill, his sauce or the youth team.
• If he lived for his teams and hobbies: the game, the drive or a morning of his hobby.
• If you want something quiet: the framed photo, his shirt or the visit with his drink.

If you are a dad yourself this year

Many people face their first Father's Day without their dad while being a father themselves. The kids have made you a card and they want pancakes. It is fine to let both things be true. Let them celebrate you in the morning, then take an hour for him in the afternoon. Tell your kids one story about their grandpa at breakfast. Children remember that kind of thing, and it is how he stays part of the family without anyone having to be sad all day.

A song for your dad

If you would like his stories kept in a song, you can make one in his memory. It is ready within 24 hours, and express delivery brings it in about an hour, so it can still be ready on Father's Day morning.

Also in the Journal: memorial songs for dad and tribute songs for a father.