About Us
Leaving the earth, better.
A sustainable legacy for Canadians.
AWAKE is creating beautiful, affordable, and sustainable cemetery solutions. We are Canada’s leaders in Ashes-to-Earth interments, specializing in eco-friendly scattering gardens and memorial forests. By working with cemeterians and scientists, our patented soil product and interment models turn cremated remains into a bioavailable nutrient source for the ecosystem, creating living memorials that honour the environment and our deceased.
In today’s world, our values define our lives. They determine our decisions and identities as family members, consumers, and citizens. We believe they should also define our final mark on the world.
After 13 years of research and international partnerships our organic soil blend is the world’s only patented product that converts cremation ashes to living earth.
Here’s the dirt.
AWAKE launched in 2021 to make greener memorial options available to all Canadians, regardless of background, beliefs, or choice of disposition.
100 percent of us die. 73 percent are choosing cremation—and until now they have been excluded from green end-of-life initiatives. We believe everyone has a right to a greener goodbye. So we set out to make it happen.
We work with cemeterians and scientists to create Canada’s most beautiful, affordable, and eco-friendly resting places. By carefully monitoring soil health and land use, we help cemeteries (and their families) create a sustainable future.
Meet our Soul Proprietors
Amanda + Lauren
Our Story
When back-to-back deaths changed their lives forever, Co-Founders Amanda Kelly and Lauren Andrew realized that traditional funeral services were falling short of their contemporary expectations. They launched AWAKE in 2021 to re-imagine after-life options for modern lifestyles, beliefs, and budgets.
In life and in business, Amanda and Lauren are committed to empathy, energy, and the environment. They bring a holistic lens to death care that connects the dots between funeral services, spirituality, and science. After three years of learning from Canadian families and service providers, they have grown AWAKE to include Planting Kits, Industry solutions, and Ceremony Services.
Amanda Kelly
A lifelong learner of science and nature, Amanda began her career as a Librarian, and holds a Masters in Information Science and undergrad in Technology & Culture from Western University. Growing up, the Dundas Valley Conservation Area played a significant role in her life. After an accident in 2019 landed her in the hospital, she began a spiritual journey that led to her ordainment as a Metaphysical Minister. She has studied many faiths, customs, and traditions and recently received her Licence as a Funeral Planner with the Bereavement Authority of Ontario.
Lauren Andrew
Growing up with Chinese ancestry, Lauren learned the power of rituals, traditions, and celebration at an early age. She holds a business degree from Toronto Metropolitan University, and launched her event management career early on in school. While rising in the ranks of the sports and entertainment industry and simultaneously running her own small business, the sudden death of a friend forever changed her perspective on life. Shortly after, Lauren and her husband moved north to balance their careers with nature, family, and community in Oro Medonte, Ontario.
Send us a note.
We support families and cemeteries across Canada, and look forward to meeting you.
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For presentations or workshops on eco-friendly memorial options, email us at: info@awakecanada.com
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We Value Diversity
AWAKE supports clients and families of all situations and backgrounds.
As lifelong advocates of equity and inclusion, we welcome inquiries from all faiths, ages, and orientations. Opportunities to learn new perspectives and traditions from the clients and communities we serve brings us great joy, and helps us to grow as people and professionals.
Land Acknowledgement
AWAKE is located on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and Wendat peoples. We recognize the generations of Indigenous Peoples who have lived on and cared for this land for thousands of years, and are grateful for the opportunity to work, learn, and grow within these ancestral territories.
We are privileged to serve people all across Turtle Island, and we recognize the enduring presence of all Indigenous nations across Canada. We honour their rich history, culture, and contributions, and are committed to supporting their rights and sovereignty.
May we listen, learn, and uphold our shared responsibility to the land and to each other.
