How to Write a Resolution to Honor Someone

Resolutions are written statements voted upon by the board members of a governmental group, non-profit or other agency. A group may approve a resolution honoring someone upon their retirement or simply to recognize a person's hard work on a project. The vote goes on the group's permanent record and is a formal method of showing appreciation. In addition to the resolution, the group may sometimes purchase a small gift, such as flowers or a plaque, to fully commemorate the occasion.

List the accomplishments of the person you want to honor. Writing a list will help you organize your thoughts and decide exactly what you want to say.

Prioritize your list. Depending upon how long you wish the resolution to be, pick the top four or five accomplishments or attributes you wish to include in the resolution.

Begin your first sentence with the word, "Whereas." Words such as "whereas," "noting" and "realizing," are often used in the preambles to resolutions. Your preamble will inform those voting why this person deserves to be honored.

Describe who the person is after the word, "whereas." Keep it simple, listing just the person's name, title or position.

Begin the second sentence with "whereas," or another word listed in Step 1. Then write in one sentence the person's top achievement from your list. You can also include attributes, such as, "Whereas, Mrs. Jones has always remained graceful under pressure."

Write the person's remaining accomplishments, each in a new sentence prefaced by "whereas," "noting," or "realizing."

Ask for the voting body to adopt the resolution honoring the person in a sentence that begins with the word, "resolved." Then write the name of the voting group, the date of the resolution and the fact that the group will honor the named person for his contributions.