Retirement Party Invitation Wording: 45+ Examples

Retirement parties have a guest list problem: colleagues, former colleagues, family and friends who have never met each other. The invitation has to work for all of them. Here are 45+ wording examples.

Send yours as a free invitation ecard — the practical option for a list spread across an office and a family.

Standard retirement party wording

1. Please join us to celebrate David’s retirement after 32 years. Friday 14th, 7pm, The Grange. RSVP by the 1st.
2. After four decades, Susan is retiring! Join us for drinks on Friday 14th from 7pm.
3. You are invited to a retirement celebration for David Whitfield. Friday 14th, 7pm to late.
4. Come and give Susan the send-off she deserves. Friday 14th, 7pm, The Anchor.
5. Please join us to mark David’s retirement and thank him properly. Friday 14th, 7pm.
6. Retirement drinks for Susan! Friday 14th from 7pm. All welcome.
7. Celebrating the end of a remarkable career. David’s retirement party, Friday 14th, 7pm.
8. Join us to wish Susan well as she finishes after 25 years. Friday 14th, 7pm.
9. An evening to celebrate David and everything he has done here. Friday 14th, 7pm.
10. You are warmly invited to Susan’s retirement celebration. Friday 14th, 7pm, The Grange.

Relaxed and light wording

1. David is escaping! Come and see him off. Friday 14th from 7pm.
2. Thirty-two years. One party. Friday 14th, 7pm — be there.
3. Susan is finally getting her Mondays back. Drinks Friday 14th from 7pm.
4. Come and celebrate the last day of David’s working life. Friday 14th, 7pm.
5. Retirement do for Susan! Friday 14th, 7pm. Bring stories.
6. He is off. Come and say goodbye properly. Friday 14th from 7pm.
7. Drinks to mark Susan’s retirement — and to make her slightly emotional. Friday 14th, 7pm.
8. After all these years, David is off. Party Friday 14th, 7pm onwards.

For a surprise retirement party

1. Surprise retirement party for David! Please arrive by 6.45pm on Friday. He thinks it is a team dinner.
2. Shhh — we are surprising Susan. In place by 7pm sharp, Friday 14th.
3. Top secret: retirement celebration for David. Guests from 6.30pm, he arrives at 7pm.
4. It is a surprise. Please do not mention it to Susan under any circumstances.
5. Sneaky send-off for David. Arrive 6.45pm, phones on silent.
6. Surprise party! Be seated before 7pm. He has been told nothing at all.

Wording for the practical details

1. Buffet from 8pm. Please let us know about dietary requirements.
2. Drinks and nibbles provided — eat beforehand if you are hungry.
3. Cash bar after the first drink.
4. Partners very welcome.
5. Former colleagues especially welcome — do pass this on to anyone we have missed.
6. We are collecting for a gift. See Jo if you would like to contribute.
7. No gifts please — David has been very clear about this.
8. If you have a story or a photograph, send it to Jo by the 7th for the speech.
9. Parking is free at the venue after 6pm.
10. RSVP to Jo on 07700 900123 by the 1st.

When it is also a farewell from the team

1. Come and thank Susan for 25 years of holding this place together. Friday 14th, 7pm.
2. A career worth celebrating properly. Join us on Friday 14th at 7pm.
3. David has trained half this department. Come and see him off. Friday 14th, 7pm.
4. Susan is retiring and the place will not be the same. Drinks Friday 14th, 7pm.
5. Join us to mark the end of an era. Friday 14th, 7pm.
6. Come and raise a glass to a genuinely remarkable career.

Short invitation lines

1. Come and celebrate David’s retirement!
2. Retirement drinks — Friday, 7pm.
3. Susan is retiring. Join us!
4. Send-off for David. Friday 14th.
5. Come and say goodbye properly.
6. Retirement party — details inside.
7. One last one, on us.
8. Join us to mark the occasion.

How to word it well

1. Say how long they served. The number of years is the whole reason for the party.
2. Make clear who is invited. Retirement lists usually include former colleagues and family — say so explicitly.
3. Handle the collection separately. Naming a contact for the gift keeps it off the main invitation.
4. Ask for stories in advance. Whoever gives the speech will thank you.
5. Include an end time. Half the guest list will be travelling and some will be considerably older than the office average.

Send it — and pair it with a gift

A free invitation ecard handles a mixed office-and-family list. See also retirement wishes and what to write in a leaving card:

FAQ

What do you write on a retirement party invitation?

Who is retiring and after how many years, the date, times, venue, whether partners are invited, and an RSVP contact. The years of service are the headline.

Should you invite former colleagues?

Usually yes, and say so on the invitation so people forward it. Old colleagues are often the guests the retiree most wants there.

How do you word a collection for a gift?

Name a contact rather than an amount: “We are collecting for a gift — see Jo if you would like to contribute.”

How do you word a surprise retirement party?

Put the arrival time and the secrecy first, and say what the retiree has been told instead.

What is a good short line?

“Come and celebrate David’s retirement!”

How far in advance should it go out?

Four to six weeks, since former colleagues and family often need to travel.