The two-story structure
This template is built around one idea: story one is from before she met her partner, story two is from after. You never explain the contrast. The two stories do it, and the room makes the connection themselves — which is far more moving than being told.
The template
Section 1 — The opening image (about 55 words)
Opening — fill in
About 55 words · 20 seconds
[A PRECISE PICTURE OR A LINE SHE ACTUALLY SAID.] ____________________
I'm [YOUR NAME], and I have been her [FRIEND / SISTER / ROOMMATE] since [WHEN — an age or an event, not a year].
Section 2 — Who she has always been (about 150 words)
A trait, not an achievement. Show it with one story rather than naming it with an adjective.
Story one — fill in
About 150 words · 60 seconds
[THE STORY — where you were, how old you were, what she did.] ____________________
[THE DETAIL NOBODY ELSE WOULD REMEMBER.] ____________________
[WHAT IT SAYS ABOUT HER.] She was [AGE] and she was already ____________________.
Section 3 — After she met them (about 150 words)
Same woman, different weather. Do not use the words "and then everything changed".
Story two — fill in
About 150 words · 60 seconds
[A SPECIFIC MOMENT AFTER THEY MET.] ____________________
[YOUR HONEST REACTION AT THE TIME.] ____________________
Section 4 — Speaking to her partner (about 90 words)
Turn your body toward them. Use their name. One specific thing you have watched them do, then the welcome — you are the one person with standing to welcome them into the friendship, not just the family.
The welcome — fill in
About 90 words · 40 seconds
[PARTNER'S NAME] — [ONE SPECIFIC THING YOU HAVE SEEN THEM DO FOR HER]. ____________________
You are not just marrying her today. [YOUR VERSION OF: you are stuck with me too.] ____________________
Section 5 — Close and toast (about 85 words)
Close — fill in
About 85 words · 40 seconds
[NAME], you have ____________________ for [HOW LONG]. I hope this marriage ____________________.
Everyone — please raise your glasses. To [NAME] and [PARTNER'S NAME].
Check before you finalise
- Delete any reference to her dating history, however oblique.
- Delete any joke about wedding planning or her stress levels.
- Confirm section four names her partner directly. It is the line people cry at.
- Mark one deliberate pause before the close — it gives you a breath if you well up.
- Time it standing. Target three to five minutes.