Owners Eric and Carolyn Johnson were finally able to have a ribbon-cutting ceremony for their Life Celebration Center of Punta Gorda on Nov. 8, following two delays due to hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Hurricanes have played a significant role in the couple’s business and future.
They bought the business at 1515 Tamiami Trail from Larry and Marian Taylor in July 2019, and its name became Johnson-Taylor Funeral & Cremation. They purchased the property on which the building sits in May 2022 and began a major renovation.
The building was gutted, and when Hurricane Ian hit in September 2022, it was damaged beyond repair.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s 50% rule mandates that structures exceeding more than 50% of the assessed valuation must be replaced.
Rather than build a similar facility, Eric Johnson, a former airline pilot, and Carolyn, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, decided to create a facility that is trending across the U.S.
The $3.75 million Life Celebration Center is designed to accommodate a wide range of events, including baby showers, birthday parties, sweet sixteen celebrations, quinceañeras, weddings, corporate events, community events, celebrations of life and funerals.
Upcoming bookings include two weddings and a baby shower; candidates for Punta Gorda’s City Council held their Meet and Greet there, and a baby shower also was held there recently, Eric said.
“We officially opened the week before Helene; we wanted to create a place for our community to celebrate all aspects of life and not just funerals.”
He said the facility’s chapel and ballroom “are very flexible” and that for certain events, “everything can be moved out.”
There is a banquet area and a patio with an outdoor bar — everything you would see at a traditional wedding reception or event facility.
Eric and Carolyn Johnson
Life Celebration Center recently made headlines on WINK News when area residents parked 72 cars and two motorcycles in the parking lot ahead of Hurricane Milton.
Eric said he invited the community via social media to park their vehicles on his lot when hurricanes Helene and Milton were approaching.
Flooding from Hurricane Milton rose some 6 feet, and for one man, that meant everything.
“The gentleman lost everything and was living in his car,” Carolyn said. Because he parked on the Johnsons’ property, he at least had that.
Following the storms, Eric scheduled pickups, calling each owner and telling them when they should retrieve their vehicles.
Carolyn said her husband of 17 years has a good heart and really cares about people.
He praised his wife and her service, saying she was an aircraft firefighter in the Marines.
They were relatively young when they arrived in Charlotte County; Eric is from Wisconsin, and Carolyn is from Missouri.
Back then, there weren’t outlets for young adults to meet like there are today, and many turned to online dating sites.
They met on Match.com, Eric said, “And here we are, 17 years later.”
For event pricing, bookings and tours of Life Celebration Center of Punta Gorda, contact Lauren Elliott at 941.585.3827 or reach out on Facebook at LCCPG Events.
