Lauren Marie Olesh

It is with the heaviest heart that we announce that Lauren Olesh lost her battle to breast cancer on March 21, 2025, at the age of 33. Lauren was a 2010 graduate of Kent Roosevelt High School. She earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Kent State University in 2015, and in 2022 graduated from The Northeast Ohio Master of Fine Arts (NEOMFA) creative writing program.

If you’ve met Lauren, you know her as the most uplifting, happy, and loving person there could be. She likely embraced you in a long, tight hug, kept in contact with you over the years, and made you feel like you were part of her life, because you were. She was the glue that held so many friends and family together. She had a laugh that was contagious and a spirit and enthusiasm for life that not even cancer could bring down. When Lauren walked into a room, she brought the sunshine with her, and on anyone’s darkest day, she was the one you wanted by your side.

She was loved and she loved harder. Her family, fiancé, friends, and her cats (the boys) were her world. She cherished her time spent hiking with her dad, traveling and gardening with her mom and sister, and planning her future with her fiancé. You would very frequently find Lauren head down in the latest graphic novel, discussing books, watching movies or playing video games. She was an amazing cook and was constantly trying and perfecting new recipes.

Her spirit and positivity were with her to the very end, and she never lost her drive to keep fighting. She is survived by her father, Neal Olesh, mother Amy Olesh, sister Courtney Olesh, fiancé Rachel Parker, boys Huckle and Simba, grandfather Barry Brewer, and many beloved aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. She is preceded in death by her uncle William “Billy” Allen, grandmother Wendy Faye Brewer, future brother-in-law Donald Bryant King, aunt Lisa Olesh, uncle Joseph Olesh, grandfather Joesph Olesh, and grandmother Valetta Pearl Stacel Olesh.

Calling hours will be held Thursday, March 27, 2025, from 11:00AM-2:00PM followed immediately by a service at 2:00PM. Services will be held at Bissler & Sons Funeral Home and Crematory (628 W. Main St. Kent, Ohio 44240). In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you plant a tree in Lauren’s name at https://shop.arborday.org/commemorative-trees-for-others?producttype=TIM.

Services in the care of Bissler and Sons Funeral Home, 628 W. Main St. Kent, OH 44240.