Down to Earth Fair

Whispering Hills Natural Green Cemetery and Memorial Nature Preserve hosted an informational fair on Earth Day weekend to offer attendees expert advice on nurturing their landscapes and end-of-life pre-planning.

The Down to Earth Fair featured exhibits and presentations from area master gardeners, conservationists, as well as estate planning and wellness providers, as part of Whispering Hills’ third anniversary celebration.

“Land conservation and restoration is really central to the mission of Whispering Hills, because they want to keep the land the way it is by actually taking it back to the way it was,” explained Ashley Desensi, co-founder of the Native Plant Coalition. “That’s a beautiful and incredibly important mission that secures the native plant life here and this natural green cemetery for generations to come.”

Forestry expert Sam Breyfogle praised Whispering Hills for maintaining its forest in a way that keeps it natural and accessible for patrons and family members visiting loved ones interred among the trees, meadows, and streams throughout the memorial nature preserve.

“Whispering Hills is doing a masterful job of protecting this place. That’s what’s really exciting and phenomenal about what’s going on here,” Breyfogle explained to fairgoers. “This place could have easily been turned into a subdivision rather than a beautiful open forest and memorial nature preserve with walking and riding trails to explore.”

A Wonderful Alternative
Daniel Campen shared his holistic estate planning approach during his featured talk with the Down to Earth Fair audience. His estate law practice is focused on ensuring end-of-life plans are in place to “ease the planning burden on your loved ones later on.”

Campen checked out Whispering Hills for the first time during the fair and found “a wonderful alternative I’m excited to share with my clients.” Like most fairgoers, Campen took a golf cart tour of the 20-acre natural cemetery at the heart of the 140-acre preserve.

“The ability to have a final resting place overlooking a stream, forest or meadow is an incredible treasure, an opportunity everyone in this area should consider,” Campen shared. “During our tour of Whispering Hills, we saw a couple sitting on a bench overlooking a loved one’s natural grave they had covered in rose petals. It’s such a different setting than a traditional cemetery covered in rows of tombstones. I’ll be bringing my friends, family, and clients here to explore this special place.”

About 120 families and individuals have chosen Whispering Hills to date as part of a growing movement toward natural cemeteries and burials. “At least seventy-five-percent of the individuals and families who’ve chosen Whispering Hills have secured their final resting place as part of their end-of-life preplanning,” explained Ralph Howard, managing partner of Whispering Hills.

Sherry Taylor and her husband Boyd were among the first to choose Whispering Hills in early 2021, as part of their end-of-life planning. “Boyd and I both loved the idea of making our last mark on Earth in this peaceful forest,” said Sherry Taylor, a lifetime LaGrange resident who shared her reasons for choosing Whispering Hills during a brief talk with fair attendees. “Boyd loved this forest. His final resting place is marked by a beautiful native stone we picked out, and I will join him at Whispering Hills when my time comes. It’s such a peaceful place that we’re so fortunate to have nearby, a place surrounded by nature that my daughter looks forward to visiting to spend time with her dad.”