The Economist Each week, our obituaries editor captures the essence of a life in fewer than 1,000 words. As the year draws to a close, we look back at the ten people whose passing sums up the events of 2016

Million Pictures Obituaries are usually written by family or friends, but Sonia Todd of Moscow decided to write hers herself. After learning that she had a terminal form of cancer, 38-year-old Todd penned her obituary in an unconventional way.

NBC News A 55-year-old New Jersey man died this week. That much is fact. But due to dueling obituaries for him, the rest is a little murky.

Daily Mail Awkward...

The Economist Each week our obituaries editor captures the essence of a life in 1,000 words. This year included giants of geopolitics, literature, and science, as well as ordinary people

HuffPost Impact "Writing obituaries is my own way of transcending bad news. It has taught me the value of intentionally trying to find the good in people and situations, and that practice -- and I do believe that finding the good can be practiced -- has made my life Read more ... more meaningful."

HuffPost Healthy Living "Writing obituaries is my own way of transcending bad news. It has taught me the value of intentionally trying to find the good in people and situations, and that practice -- and I do believe that finding the good can be practiced -- has made my life Read more ... more meaningful."

The Huffington Post "I understand why you may think that what I do is depressing, but compared to front-page news, most obituaries are downright inspirational."

HuffPost Impact "I understand why you may think that what I do is depressing, but compared to front-page news, most obituaries are downright inspirational."

Fletcher Bateman This is like nothing you have ever seen on a large scale. We are committed to doing what is good and responding with compassion to the relationship problems we see between groups of people in our communities. Our nation needs us to rise to the occasi Read more ... on and our hearts compel us to act. There is a solution. You are a part of that solution. Will you help us? We need you over the next 24 hours to give funds, share, ask others to share, call in favors, tag everyone you know (especially in other states), and spread this video across the nation. Go to our gofundme at the end of the video to give, learn how to help, and to see our comprehensive plan on addressing the problems we face. Our nation and communities need help so we will build a model here in Hartsville to help them. Do this for your family, your community, your children, and grandchildren. Success lies in your hands. We have 24 hours and we believe we can meet our goal in that amount of time. Let's go!!!! Love, OneHartsville https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X15iOIqJrgA