There are some many ways to honor a person’s life or accomplishments and we want to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to do so. 

Retirement Plaques

Retirement plaques come in all shapes and sizes and are typically customized based upon the recipient. The plaques can be wood or marble, have a shiny piano finish or be a classic matte. Sometimes plaques can even be glass, it just depends on the look that the company is going for. My personal favorite is a particular glass one we carry called the Golden Risk Taker. It is a glass plaque with a gold foil backing. We etch the front of the glass and fill it black typically and the finished product shines with great contrast and a very classy look while still feeling modern. If you prefer the traditional look, we also have a build-a-plaque system. The first choice is the board size and color. Then the choice of what kind of plate goes on it. Will the plate have designs? Will it be black with gold lettering or silver lettering? Do you want a logo on it in color or just engraved like the rest of the plate? So many choices give so many combinations to ensure that each person’s plaque commemorates such a special moment in a unique way. 

Celebration of Life

Another type of commemorative plaque that is pretty common is a memorial plaque, in remembrance of someone who has passed away, but meant a lot to their community. These plaques are different from the retirement plaques in the fact that they won’t be on display in a house, they’re typically displayed out in the community. Most of the time, these plaques are cast in bronze of aluminum, or they are engraved into wood or stone. The aluminum castings can consist of just a few lines of text, or they can be very elaborate with patterns and photos on them. Our designers can render photos of your loved ones to be engraved for these particular projects. 

The stone and wood plaques are subtle and natural and really complement gardens. A lot of communities have gardens where the public can tend to the garden or where they can sponsor the gardens by donating plants. Many times, when these contributors pass away, a memorial plaque will be put on a stake in the ground around an area that they sponsored. 

The bronze and aluminum cast plaques are great for things like park benches, walls on the outside of buildings or being mounted into the ground. Bronze plaques are very durable and can help commemorate a loved one. We’ve had plaques cast in the past to be added to graves. Sometimes having something cast like this gives a feeling of permanence, like you don’t have to let go of the person you lost because you have something solid as a reminder.

A New Chapter

Most of the events that commemorative plaques are created for are quite bittersweet. They usually represent the closing of one door and some sort of change, but in the end we always celebrate. For another heartwarming story about one of the commemorative plaques that we’ve done, check out this blog post from a few years ago.