Obituary Examples for a Colleague

A colleague's death is felt across a corridor, a shift or a whole firm, and the words often come from the people who worked beside them as much as from the family at home. These three examples honour a working life in three registers — short and dignified, personal and warm, or faith-centred — while keeping the person, not the job title, at the centre. The best tribute to a colleague names a habit, a kindness or a lesson that outlasted the last day of work.

Short and dignified

Petrus 'Piet' van Wyk, 63, of Vanderbijlpark, died suddenly on 16 July 2026. Born on 11 March 1963, Piet spent thirty-eight years as a fitter and turner at the steelworks, and in all that time was late for a shift only once — the morning his daughter was born. His apprentices, some of them now foremen themselves, remember that he checked every measurement twice and signed off on nothing he had not seen with his own eyes. Piet is survived by his wife, Annelize; his daughter, Chanel; and two grandsons. His colleagues on B-shift will keep a minute's silence at the change of shift on Friday. The funeral service will be held at 10:00 on 24 July at the AGS Kerk, Vanderbijlpark.

Personal and warm

Thandiwe 'Thandi' Khumalo, 58, of Soweto, died on 19 July 2026 after a long illness she bore with her usual stubbornness. Born in Orlando East on 30 November 1967, Thandi worked her way from the switchboard to branch manager at the same bank over thirty-four years. She kept a desk drawer of spare stockings, safety pins and boiled sweets for anyone who arrived at work in a crisis, and she remembered which of the tellers took sugar. New staff were assigned to her not by the roster but by instinct: everyone knew Thandi would tell you the truth kindly and cover for you once. Her team learned as much from her lunch-hour advice as from any training course. Thandi is survived by her husband, Sipho; her son, Lwazi; and three sisters, and is mourned by every branch she ever ran.

Faith-centred

Samuel 'Sam' Arendse, 61, of Paarl, died on 21 July 2026 after collapsing in the workshop he had run for twenty-six years. Born on 9 July 1965, Sam built cabinets that outlast their owners, and began every working day with a short prayer at his bench that his staff came to wait for, tools down, before the first cut. He would not take on a job he could not do honestly, and he gave the first hour of every Saturday to mending pews and school desks for those who could not pay. His workers say they learned their trade from his hands and their conscience from his example. Sam is survived by his wife, Ruth; four children; and the congregation of the Volle Evangelie Kerk, who will carry his coffin. A man of few words, he let his work speak, and it spoke plainly of his faith.

Writing tips for a colleague's obituary

Tell the working life through a habit, not a title. 'Late for a shift only once in thirty-eight years' says more than 'dedicated employee' ever could.
Show the person behind the desk. One line about the family, the garden or the faith they went home to rounds out a life that was more than its job.
If the workplace is posting the notice, agree the names, dates and funeral details with the family first, and let them read it before it goes public.
Credit what they taught. The apprentices they trained and the juniors they carried are a living legacy — name that inheritance rather than listing promotions.

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Common questions

Should the company or the family write the obituary?+

Often both. The family usually owns the main obituary and funeral notice, while the workplace may add a short tribute or death notice of its own. Whoever writes it, agree the facts first and let the family approve anything published under the person's name.

How much detail about their job is appropriate?+

Enough to show who they were, not a full CV. One telling habit — how they ran a shift, what they refused to cut corners on, the junior they mentored — carries more than a list of titles and promotion dates.

Is it appropriate to mention that they died at work?+

Only if the family is comfortable with it and the facts are settled. Plain phrasing such as 'died suddenly' or 'collapsed at the workshop' is usually enough — spare any speculation or detail the family would not want read aloud.