Laurin Ashley Hawkins, 32, a resident of Buckeye, Arizona, passed away unexpectedly on August 1, 2022. She was born September 14, 1989, in Phoenix, Arizona, and grew up in the Phoenix area. She attended Peoria High School, and graduated in 2008 with an abundance of friends, many of whom remained her life-long friends. She furthered her education by attending The Bryman School, and graduated in 2009 as a Certified Pharmacy Technician. After graduating from Bryman, she met and married Justin Blackwell, and had two beautiful girls, Ellie and Parker, now ages 9 and 8. Sadly, she and Justin divorced, but they remained close friends until her passing.
Laurin loved to be outside, and throughout her childhood and into her adult years, she loved to camp, kayak, fish, go tubing, go off-roading in her Jeep, and most recently she had acquired a golf cart from Mom and Dad. She took a real liking to driving it around the neighborhood with her two girls. She loved to spend time in Rocky Point with her parents, Eric and Stacy Hawkins, her girls, and her brother and his family. She would tear up and down the beaches and roads of Mexico in the Can-Am. The faster the ride, the more she liked it.
She raced quarter midget race cars when she was 5. That is not to say that she didn’t continue to race around in anything she could find, and in her high school years she enjoyed driving her green Bronco all over town. She religiously went to Country Thunder every year with her posse of friends, and every year proved to be more adventurous than the previous year, with some very colorful stories to share (most of which, thankfully, she didn’t share with Mom and Dad).
She loved the ocean and anything ocean related. When she was younger she would tell everyone she was going to be a marine biologist. She had a passion for sea turtles. Over the years, she had many aquariums full of fish and turtles. Since she lived in a desert, the marine biology career didn’t pan out, but filling her home with all things ocean-related gave her home in the desert a tropical vibe. She enjoyed the times she spent at various lakes over the years. She was the one who would zip around on a jet ski, and then come into the houseboat and curl up to watch her favorite movies, while waiting for the all-important Grandma boat-made cooked meal.
Laurin also loved animals, and rescued too many to count over the years. She loved the rescuing part better than she loved the caretaking part, so most of the animals would end up at her parents’ house to be cared for, but she did make very regular visits to enjoy their company and spoil them all a bit.
Laurin loved sunflowers. We came across a saying that said, “In a world full of roses, be a sunflower.” Laurin was definitely that. She was unique and fun-loving, not quite as dainty or refined as a rose, and at times a little rough around the edges, just like a sunflower. She never minced words, had virtually no filter, and you always knew where you stood with her. She lived life aggressively, and to the fullest. You just never knew what her latest passion or project was going to be. She was fiercely loyal to her friends, and we are certain Country Thunder and Eric Church concerts will never be the same without her.
Laurin will be truly missed by her parents, Eric and Stacy Hawkins, her brother Baine and sister-in-law Mindy, her nephew and niece, Wynston and Abygail, her grandmother, Gloria Nimo, her ex-husband Justin Blackwell, stepdaughter Kiley, and the entire Blackwell/Kolpack family, as well as many aunts, uncles, cousins, and lifelong friends. She will be most missed by her precious little girls, Ellie and Parker, whom she loved dearly. She crammed a lot of fun times and adventures into the short years she got to spend with them. One of their most recent memories will be hiking and driving around in the golf cart. She had a passion for surprising her Mom by randomly placing gnomes and pink flamingoes here and there, or by placing Easter stickers all over the dining room windows. She will be missed all year long, but especially at her favorite holidays - St. Patrick’s Day, Halloween, 4th of July, and Christmas. Those holidays will never be quite the same without her crazy holiday antics. We are all wondering who is going to change the letters that spell “Noel” in her Mom’s kitchen every year at Christmas to read “Leon?” Maybe her girls can pick up that tradition and run with it!
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