Rude message on dad's gravestone appalls cemetery staff - but family know he'd love it

A family wanted to pay tribute to a beloved father in a humorous way, by secretly including an explicit message on his headstone, but staff at the cemetery haven't found it so funny.

While grieving the death of a loved one, often those left behind will want to remember their fun, light-hearted side amid their sadness, and this was just the case with the Owens family.

After dad Steven Owens passed away, his family sneakily included his favoured "term of endearment" in the headstone inscription, which at first glance looks like a fairly standard, touching message of remembrance.

However, those who look carefully will see that, when you add together the first letter of each line, you get a far more outrageous epitaph, with Steven permitted one final "F*** off" from beyond the grave.

The expletive had been Steven's "term of endearment" (CNN)

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The Owens family says the message was meant as a harmless way to remember him, with Steven having regularly used the term "F*** off" in a jokey manner.

The marker reads: "Forever in our hearts. Until we meet again. Cherished memories. Known as. Our son, brother. Father, papa, uncle. Friend and cousin."

Speaking with the news station WIBW, Steven’s daughter Lindsay Owens said: "It was definitely his term of endearment. If he didn’t like you, he didn’t speak to you. It’s just who he was."

Cemetery staff aren't best pleased about the mischievous epitaph (CNN)

Unfortunately, staff at the Warren-Powers Cemetery in Polk County, Iowa, reportedly aren't so keen on the unique memorial and have been against it from the very start.

Staff members feel such profanity is unsuitable for a place of eternal rest, but the Owens family is hopeful the controversial gravestone will stay put.

Steven’s son Zachary Owens added: "No one’s forcing anyone to come out and look at it. That’s a choice that you make. We didn’t do it to offend anyone, make anyone mad or hurt anyone’s feelings.

"We did it because it was our father, and we love him, and that’s how we remember him."

It's unclear at the time of writing whether or not the Owens family will have no choice but to swap the headstone for something more traditional.

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