A Lakewood Ranch business is more than a funeral home. It’ll cater your next social event
The Celebration of Life Center that recently opened at Lakewood Ranch has some extras that weren’t often seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new business is a multipurpose event center with a flexible, open design for catered receptions, community gatherings and club meetings.
The 7,800-square-foot space can accommodate groups of up to 136 and an event coordinator is on hand to handle catering.
With a population estimated at 57,000, the fast-growing master-planned community was in need for more meeting space, and it also lacked a funeral home.
That is until Robert Toale & Sons, a Dignity Memorial provider, recently opened the new facility at 4310 Solutions Lane, near Lakewood Ranch Boulevard and 44th Avenue East.
The Celebration of Life Center is filled with equipment to assist with developing life-story vignettes, multimedia celebrations and live streaming for family and friends who are unable to mourn or celebrate a dearly departed in person. Paying respects remotely became part of the new normal during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are seeing a drift away from traditional services, and there are a lot more options now,” said Jeff Toale, vice president of business development. “A celebration of life means something different to everybody. It has become a more positive and uplifting experience. It’s a new way of healing.”
Funeral home providers, like other businesses, had to figure out a new way forward during the pandemic.
“It was still our job to show up and help people through a difficult time,’’ Toale said of the masking and strict cleaning measures his company adopted to keep families and workers safe.
“Our newest location in Lakewood Ranch allows us to better serve one of the fastest growing communities in the United States,” Toale said.
The public is invited to a grand opening from 4 to 7 p.m. June 8, with a ribbon-cutting at 4:45 p.m. The grand opening will include food from Mission Barbecue, spirits from Loaded Cannon Distillery, craft brew from Good Liquid and music by Kettle of Fish. Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance officials will offer remarks.
“It’s an amazing feeling. I feel like we’re on the cutting edge. We are thrilled to now be just down the street to help Lakewood Ranch residents uniquely celebrate a loved one’s life with our personalized services. We also now have a beautiful space for all types of gatherings, whether they be business groups or social clubs. We hope to be a good neighbor for the Lakewood Ranch community,” Toale said.
Robert Schmitt, an urban planner and one of the first residents of Lakewood Ranch in the 1990s, previously commented on plans for the Celebration of Life Center.
“It’s amazing how everything comes full circle so fast,” Schmitt said
Robert Toale & Sons has been serving the Bradenton-Sarasota area over 50 years and is part of Dignity Memorial, a provider of funeral, cremation, and cemetery services. The Celebration of Life Center will refer families to the existing cemeteries of Manasota Memorial Park, Palms Memorial Park, Mansion Memorial Park and Sarasota National Cemetery.
