- Date Of Birth: January 29, 1957
- Date Of Death: November 20, 2021
- State: Indiana
Ms. Linda D. Tomlinson, RN, MSN, 64 of Elkhart, passed away peacefully on Saturday, November 20, 2021 at her home surrounded by family.
She was born in Elkhart on January 29, 1957 to the late Herbert and Doris (Blackwell) Greene and is survived by her daughters Rachael (Chris) Huffman and Jennifer (Mauricio) Sanchez, both of Elkhart; brothers Steven (Brenda) Greene of Hampshire, Illinois and Craig (Johana) Greene of Goshen; grandchildren Lydia, Olivia, Chelsee, Gabrielle and Christian; and nieces and nephews Justin Othick and Sarah (Brett), Traden and Marshall Ballenger.
Linda graduated from Elkhart Central High School and was employed at Whitehall Laboratories in Elkhart until their unfortunate close. It was then, she chose to pursue her calling and earned her Associates Degree in Nursing at Southwestern Michigan College and then, along with her daughter, Rachael, obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing at IUSB. She went on to earn her Master of Science in Nursing from Phoenix University in 2004 and was nearing completion of her Family Nurse Practitioners certification when she was diagnosed with brain cancer. She valued education and enjoyed her opportunity to be an instructor in the IUSB Nursing Program, where she loved her interactions with her students and watching them learn. She worked as a Registered Nurse the majority of her career at various area medical facilities, including Elkhart General Hospital and the Elkhart OSMC, and treasured having had the ability to help others. It was quite obvious that her altruistic personality lent well to her profession.
At home, she had a more relaxed attitude and loved to spend time with her family and grandchildren. She enjoyed listening to oldies, fishing and was always making updates to her the house and keeping her flower garden in tip-top shape. She was proud of the home that she had shared with one of her daughters and the grands, and it showed with the love that she regularly poured into it. She also enjoyed attending family reunions and looked forward to making that trip each summer. She was quite artistically talented and enjoyed drawing, painting and especially working with clay, as she had a potter’s wheel and a kiln that came in handy when her creative urges called.
Finally, it simply MUST be mentioned that Linda was a devout fan and aficionado of the movie classic “The Sound Of Music”, and for her it was one of those movies that you can never watch too many times. She loved all of the songs; from “The Lonely Goatherd” to “Edelweiss” to “Climb Every Mountain”, and she always kept a special place in her heart for Maria and the Von Trapp family!
