A father of the bride wedding speech. It’s easy to see why those words can be a daunting prospect for any father whose daughter is about to be married.

When I sat down to write the speech I would deliver at my daughter’s wedding, one of the things I worried about most was whether it would be a hit or not. Would the wedding guests love it, or loath it? Would they laugh or cry? Cringe or clap enthusiastically?

Would my speech be the perfect kick-start to the evening? A wedding speech of such insight, humor and poignancy that would be the perfect introduction to the father of the groom’s speech, the groom’s speech, the best man’s speech and even my own daughter’s bridal speech.

Father of the bride speeches and toasts set the standard for the rest of the speeches that follow. So you need to be prepared because your daughter will remember your speech for the rest of her life.

What I found was that with the proper preparation, I could virtually guarantee my father of the bride wedding speech would be successful. All I had to do was follow a few simple guidelines to be the hit of the wedding.

First of all, remember to thank everyone for either helping with the bridal preparations or coming to the wedding. To attend a wedding very often means traveling, staying overnight somewhere, buying a new outfit and buying wedding gifts. And for many people even finding someone to look after the children.

So remember to thank your wife and immediate family, your relatives and even your friends for helping to raise the beautiful bride whose special day they are all sharing.

Thank Your Family, But Don’t Forget The Groom’s

Equally important is welcoming the groom’s family into the fold. At my daughter Jenny’s wedding this was very easy. I’d known her husband Scotty and his family for years because we all farm in the same country in Montana.

I knew they were genuinely good people so it was easy for me to talk fondly about them and really extend a genuine welcome. But with young people today getting together from all over the country, you might have very little idea what your new in-laws are going to be like.

Father of the bride.