Gary Rollins says that sometimes people looking for the Rollins Life Celebration Center drive past it, and have to turn around and come back.
“It doesn’t look like a typical funeral home,” he says. “It looks more like a contemporary church. People passing through don’t always know what this building is – whether it’s a community center or something else.”
It’s true that the Rollins Life Celebration Center is certainly breaking the mold when it comes to what a typical funeral home looks like and does. Rollins moved from his previous location – which was the Gary L. Rollins Funeral Home – to the Life Celebration Center location at 330 Catoctin Avenue about two years ago. Creating the Life Celebration Center was a labor of love and inspiration. Rollins worked with an architect on a custom design for the building that was inspired by a light-filled, modernist church in Sweden.
This reimagining of the traditional funeral home space was completely intentional. Rollins and his wife Denise wanted to create an environment where the focus was redirected away from death, gloom, and finality to transition, hope, and gratitude.
Hence the reframing of his business’s title from “Funeral Home” to “Life Celebration Center.” The Rollinses bring this more hopeful understanding of funeral services throughout their entire business model. Another thing that distinguishes the Life Celebration center is the integration of Dr. Denise Rollins’s nonprofit, Whole Heart Grief and Life Resource Center.
The goal of these two organizations in partnership, Gary and Denise say, is to support clients and families even months after the funeral is over. Rollins Life Celebration Center is more than a funeral home; it’s a community that helps bereaved families heal.
Brought Together in Purpose
Far from being coincidental, it was Gary and Denise’s shared purpose and experiences that brought them together as partners.
Denise lost her first husband in June of 2008, and Gary handled the funeral services. In her first encounter with him, Denise noticed how “compassionate and professional” he was in supporting her and her family members.
Gary lost his own wife in November of 2009. In 2011, Gary and Denise met again when she volunteered, as a Hood College MA Thanatology student, to work on a website project for him. This led to Gary asking Denise on a date.
Just six months later, they were married. It’s hard to imagine two people better positioned to serve their community together. Their stars truly aligned.
“We were really brought together by these shared experiences of loss and a commitment to community,” Denise says. “The things we share personally also have informed our work. I see where Gary is able to help meet the needs of grieving in the short term, and I step in for the long-term support.”
They also have a shared attitude and perspective that guides the philosophy for the Life Celebration Center: gratitude. “Gary and I are both so grateful toward the spouses we lost, the years that we were able to share with them, and we position gratitude toward experience as an important factor in the healing process,” Denise says.
“After all,” she continues, “there are some experiences, both good and bad, that we simply need to have to set us up to be the people we are today.”
A Holistic Mission
The major differences between the Rollins Life Celebration Center and most traditional funeral homes are that it’s active in the community, it offers coaching and support, and it’s available to honor all the transitions of life.
Gary and Denise have opened the center to host “community days” – featuring food and fun activities to connect friends and neighbors – and also support local organizations such as the Frederick Steppers, the Black Frederick Festival, and the Road Knights Car Club.
Most people also wouldn’t realize that the Life Celebration Center caters to more than just funerals. The Rollinses have had clients for birthday parties, weddings, business meetings, and the Mayor has even used the location for his State of the City address. The appearance and the environment of the center lend themselves to many different types of occasions – the decoration is peaceful and uplifting rather than somber, and the building admits plenty of natural light.
Still, the Whole Heart Grief and Life Resource Center is the facility’s real edge. The nonprofit, with Dr. Denise Rollins as Executive Director, offers personal coaching and compassionate support groups for those suffering from grief or coping with other challenging life transitions. The organization additionally specializes in serving the underserved and meeting the unique needs of Black community members.
All clients who engage the Life Celebration Center for a funeral are offered a free individual grief coaching session through the Whole Heart Center, and volunteers call 30 days after each funeral to check on the family and let them know that they have options for support. Dr. Rollins, whose Ph.D. is in Marriage and Family Therapy, chose to found Whole Heart as a nonprofit to keep services accessible regardless of income. Coaching sessions are available at reduced prices, and the grief support groups are free.
Even in her work helping clients navigate grief, though, Dr. Rollins tries to keep at least some of the focus on joy. “Our women’s support group recently had a tea party, and we go on a Ladies’ Night Out the first Friday of each month.”
An Invaluable Team
While Gary and Denise may be leading their united organizations, they are quick to insist that they wouldn’t get far without the Life Celebration Center & Whole Heart Center teams. Their core value of gratitude extends to how they feel about the dedicated individuals who have joined them in the work of serving the community. Some of their employees have been with either the funeral home or Whole Heart Center for 10 years or more, and all of them take pride in what the innovative facility is accomplishing.
In their own words:
“What I love about the Life Celebration Center is that anyone who comes through our doors is treated like family. We know a lot of the people we serve, and it feels good to be able to help them through tough times.”
Kavonté Duckett, Director of Operations, Life Celebration Center (and Vice President, Frederick County Council)
“Every day at Whole Heart, I am surrounded by like-minded individuals—those who are eager to heal and those who may be just beginning their journey. The privilege of being a guiding light for those in need of hope and direction is indescribable.”
Precious Johnson, Executive Coordinator, Whole Heart Center
“When people think about the funeral business, it is sometimes associated with doom and gloom. However, I don't see it that way. I see it as a ministry; not everyone can do it.”
Celeste Stanley, Funeral Director, Life Celebration Center
“Healing communities and families starts with self-healing. I find that I am learning and growing through helping others – as I help others heal, I am healing myself, too.”
Saundra Boujai, Master Coach, Whole Heart Center
“Rollins Life Celebration Center is really changing the narrative around funeral homes – I’ve never heard of another facility like it. We try to create a warm, inviting environment that’s brighter and more open. We seek to elevate, encourage, and provide hope.”
Shirlene Roberts, Administrator, Life Celebration & Whole Heart Center
In a time where so many things have rapidly changed, it’s interesting to reflect on how funeral homes, by and large, remain stuck in the past. “There’s this heaviness that you feel in the environment of most funeral homes – they feel dark, dated, and closed,” Denise says. What Gary and Denise Rollins have tried to do at Rollins Life Celebration Center is lift the mood. The goal is to dispel some of the heaviness of grief by bringing in a different element – light.
...focus on transition, hope, and gratitude.
Gary and Denise Rollins met through shared experiences of loss, now working together to help others heal.
The Whole Heart Grief and Life Resource Center offers grief coaching and support groups, ensuring long-term care for families after the funeral.
"...anyone who comes through our doors is treated like family"