Dear Kelly,
Welcome back to the Disney Parks Moms Panel! We are so touched that you wrote to us, asking for any ideas to honor your father while sailing aboard
Disney Cruise Line. My heart is heavy to hear that he passed away in May; however, it sounds like you are planning an incredible family cruise to honor his life and love for family!
I've seen families onboard Disney Cruises celebrating the life of a loved one who has passed by making matching shirts for each person in the family and wearing them the same day. Each shirt would have a phrase saying something about "Honoring Grandpa" or "Honoring Dad" and include a photo of him and the years of his life. If you did this with your family, you could all take a group picture to commemorate the trip.
Another idea to honor your dad is to ask each person in the family who will be on the cruise to write down one of their favorite memories of your dad on a piece of paper. You can choose one dinner onboard to take turns reading the memories. You could even turn this into a sort of game by having the memories written anonymously and having each person choose one memory from a bowl to read aloud. After reading it, you can guess who wrote the memory! This would probably lead to a dinner full of laughter and reminiscing about the incredible man your father was and forever will be in your hearts.
Lastly, you could possibly come up with a small design honoring your dad and make door magnets for your stateroom doors. It's very popular for Guests to announce what they're celebrating during the voyage by creating a stateroom door magnet and bringing it along. You'd be celebrating and honoring your dad's life.
Kelly, although your dad won't physically be with you during your Disney Cruise next year, I believe he will be sailing with you in memory and spirit.
Beth