Hope Eternal Gardens Co-Founder Lauren Robie Named Finalist for Daily Sun FIERCE Women Awards, October 2025
- Lauren Robie
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Voting Underway for Daily Sun FIERCE Women Awards, October 2025
We are honored to share that Lauren Robie, co-founder of Hope Eternal Gardens, has been named a finalist for the Daily Sun FIERCE Women October 2025 edition. This recognition celebrates women who are making an impact in their communities, and we are grateful that Lauren’s work to reimagine cemeteries and create ecological legacies is being recognized.
About the FIERCE Women Awards
The Daily Sun launched the FIERCE Women Awards to shine a spotlight on women who demonstrate leadership, courage, creativity, and impact in Charlotte County and beyond. Each month, a FIERCE Woman finalist is profiled, and readers vote to select a Woman of the Month. Those monthly honorees then move forward to be considered for the annual FIERCE Woman of the Year award, announced at the end of the year.
The program has quickly become a hallmark of local recognition, highlighting women who are entrepreneurs, educators, healthcare leaders, artists, community advocates, and more — all working to shape a stronger and more connected Southwest Florida.
Hope Eternal Gardens Co-Founder Lauren Robie: Planting Forests, Growing Legacies
"Confidence isn't about being fearless. It's about being able to overcome that fear because what you're doing is worth it."
The Daily Sun profile, “Lauren Robie plants forests, grows legacies” by Sue Wade, shares how Lauren’s journey toward creating Hope Eternal Gardens was shaped by both personal experience and artistic vision.
Perseverance: Lauren was inspired by her mother-in-law, Kena Alonso, who longed for a natural burial but couldn’t find one in Florida. That desire became the seed that eventually grew into Hope Eternal Gardens, Charlotte County’s first licensed natural burial cemetery.
Carrying a Legacy: Caring for Kena — while raising a young family — gave Lauren firsthand perspective on what it means to design a place where families can create lasting legacies of love and connection.
Confidence in a Mission: Lauren and her husband, Chris, committed to building something very different from conventional cemeteries. Instead of lawns and vaults, they chose to create memorial forests that restore ecosystems and offer families healing landscapes.
Embracing Life: Lauren shares in the article that death has shifted her outlook on life: “There’s been a huge shift toward wellness for our family, including how we eat, exercise, and experience mindfulness, spirituality, and community. All of those things have become much more precious.”
Empathy for Grieving Families: She believes cemeteries can help transform grief when families are surrounded by natural beauty and supported by a community-focused approach.
For Lauren, being named a FIERCE Women finalist is not just a personal milestone. It is a moment that shines a light on what is possible when we design cemeteries as places of healing – for people, for communities, and for the planet.
FIERCE Woman of the Month and Woman of the Year
Voting is now open for the Daily Sun FIERCE Women October edition. If Lauren is named Woman of the Month for October, she will advance to the next stage and be in the running for Daily Sun Woman of the Year.
We would be deeply grateful for your support. Every vote helps bring greater awareness to natural burial, ecological restoration, and the idea of leaving behind a legacy that lives on in the form of forests.
Gratitude to Our Community
We are thankful for every family, supporter, and friend who has believed in this mission. Together, we are building something more than a cemetery – we are creating a place where love, remembrance, and renewal take root.
Hope Eternal Gardens is proud to be part of a growing movement for sustainable legacies, natural burial in Florida, and the planting of forests that will stand for generations.
🌿 Thank you for being part of this journey.
