Remembering the wonderful spirit, deep faith, and bravery of Roby Baird.
Last year, I was looking for Roby. We had lost touch, and I wasn’t able to find his Facebook account or any information about him on the web. The other day, he was heavy on my mind again, and I decided to search for him. Sadly, I came across his obituary. I discovered that he had passed away on July 31, 2025. My heart sank when I learned the news. I must have been looking for him not too long before then. Today, I’m just kicking myself for not looking harder.
He was a great human being: funny, sincere, loving, and someone whom I admired for his tremendous faith in God. Even in his own despair, he remained a faithful disciple, never wavering. He knew the sun would rise again in the morning.
I first met Roby back in 2014, when I began documenting the lives of those desperately in need of medical marijuana. At the time, I was curious about all the conversations happening around the subject, especially after watching a CNN documentary called Weed, hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta in 2013. It featured the late Charlotte Figi, a little girl who suffered from Dravet syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy. I decided to look deeper into the matter, and that is how the story, “WEED: The Story of Charlotte’s Tangle Web,” began.
Medical marijuana was not legal in Florida. In June 2014, then-Governor Rick Scott signed the Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act, which was referred to as the “Charlotte’s Web” law. The legislation was intended to legalize low-THC, high-CBD cannabis for patients with cancer and severe seizures. However, because of the bureaucracy, legal battles, and strict regulations imposed on patients, it actually took more than two years for those who desperately needed it to receive it. August 2016 marked the first time a patient legally received a dose.
Leading up to the passage of Amendment 2 in Florida in November 2016, I was fortunate to meet wonderful mothers who allowed me to join them on their journey as they fought for this basic right: to have medical marijuana as an option for their children. It didn’t take me long to become an advocate. I witnessed firsthand the miracles happening because of this plant.
It was during this journey that I met Roby, who was desperate to save his own life after undergoing brain surgery for a malignant tumor on the left side of his brain. He was a true believer in cannabis as medicine, having witnessed the benefits it had on his then-wife after she was diagnosed with Stage IV Hodgkin lymphoma in 2004. He said it saved her life. It was a friend who first suggested that she try marijuana.
In 2018, Roby underwent another brain surgery, this time for cancer. Another fight lay ahead. He was a true warrior. From 2014 to 2025, his journey was one of tremendous courage and faith.
I was happy to see that he had married again. My heart goes out to his four children, his entire family, and his friends.
The passage from Psalms that I have shared is one Roby once recited to me. I am truly grateful for the time we spent together, for his friendship, and for his willingness to let me in and allow me to share his story with the world. He believed deeply in fighting for all of us to have the right to access medical cannabis.
Thank you so much, Roby. You inspired not only me but so many others. Knowing the beautiful soul you shared with me, I have no doubt you are now an angel flying among angels.
Rest in peace my friend.
Love,
Jenn ❤️🕊️
If you’d like to learn more about Roby’s story, you can read about his journey and view the photographs documenting his experience on the Taking Focus website.