Good afternoon everyone my name is Bret Walters son inlaw to Bud and Linda I’m married to Buds daughter Becky.
On behalf of the family, thank you for coming here today to Celebrate the Life of Linda Abbott. Linda would feel almost embarrassed that so many people would show up in her honour, she really never strived to be in the limelight, always preferring to be in the background helping others. Throughout her illness Linda kept saying how everyone was spoiling her and how well she was looked after all of the time and our stock answer was we were just trying to repay you for your kindness and generosity and we still had a long way to go.
All I can say is thank you to everyone, friends and family for your kindness, love and support, I could stand up here all day and tell about you the things Linda’s friends have done for her, Bud and Louise. I would just like to say a special thank you to the ladies that help with lunch everyday, the fellows that helped Bud build the ramp at the house, the staff at the Green Home. You reap what you sow and Linda was repaid tenfold, it was amazing to see.
It was Linda’s wish not to have a conventional service, that’s where I come in I’m about as unconventional as it gets some days.
Today we are just going to follow the program so you don’t have to listen to me to much, so as one person is done speaking if the next one could just come up I don’t need to introduce you. If anyone is having a hard time following the program just ask the person next to you as they are more than likely a teacherand they can help you out.
At this time we are going to hear one of Linda’s favourite songs,,, then we will have the tributes to Linda starting with myself, then Philip, followed by Miggs and then Nancy.
This is the third time in a year that I spoken at a service like this, all the same age, all having cancer, as much as I don’t like the reason I’m humbled and honoured to be asked. The one thing that I’ve discovered is that when I sit down to figure out what I want to say, I just start writing about my experiences with that person in no real order and I laugh and I cry and realize that I’m just plain blessed to have had that person in my life however short that time might be, and that my life has been enriched because of it.
Linda Abbott, wife, mother , sister, stepmother, grandmother, mother-in-law, role model, tour guide, educator, teacher, hostess, hero, women of the year. Linda was all of these and more and she did all of them well.
The first time I met Linda, Bud was receiving the Citizen of the Year award, we drove out from Calgary that morning and arrived just in time for lunch I got introduced and promptly given a video camera from Linda to record the ceremony, no pressure at all. Everything went well and I soon became and these are Lindas words, the World’s Best Son-In law. It didn’t hurt that I was the only one for 99% of the time.
Now when you get that kind of recognition from Linda there was some suffering that one had to endure. What I had to endure was weight gain. There are many of you that have known Linda much longer than I and more than likely have been to their house for a dinner or a party, so you know God help you when Linda finds out that you have a favourite something, because not only was there some made for you, but there would be enough to take home for the next month.
Linda was a great cook and a greater hostess, many of you have been to their house for dinner and Linda would bring out 5 or 6 deserts that Linda made and then Linda wouldn’t have any because she didn’t like any of them, she was just going to have a Dilly bar from Dairy Queen, that was the classic Linda.
I think Linda’s idea of a successful dinner party was not if everyone had a great time, no she gauged things by weight gain. I personally think that there is a secret weigh scale at the front door to their house and you were weighed in and weighed out and Linda thought that if she averaged 3 lbs per person. That was a great party.
Linda as a grandmother, there was none better. Our two boys Philip and William will forever remember their time with Grandma as their best times at Christmas, birthdays, and Easter . You name it Grandma was always making sure her boys always had a great time. Christmas was the favourite as Gramma always had the boys excited and catered to their taste buds with all of their favourite treats and ,,,the presents, if it fit the budget Gramma would always get the best presents for the boys.
Linda was a great Tour guide, there were many guest from around the world that visited and when you came Canada and didn’t know where you wanted to go, no worries,, Linda not only showed you everything there was to see and sometimes more, but you usually needed another week of holiday to recover from Linda’s schedule.
One of my favourite things about Linda was Linda always wanted to make sure everyone was well fed and watered, my favourite one was we were out for visit one fall and I was going fishing for the day, Linda wanted to make me a sandwich, I’ve learned to say ok that would be great, then she started throwing in chips, apples ,granola bars, candy bars you name it. I told her I was going to the St Mary’s river and would be sliding down the hill under the bridge on the way to the airport and all I ever took was one beer, one water and one sandwich,,,, didn’t matter I left the house with a medium size cooler and enough food for four hungry people.
The only disappointment I ever had with Linda was minor. I like to fly fish, Linda liked to do needle point. I thought this was a match made in heaven,,, and that Linda might like to tie a few flies for the worlds best son in-law. I’d run it by her and say that I would give her a easy pattern to tie and she would look at me and smile and always say ,,, “sure when I get a free moment and when I feel like it” , it never happened.
I called Linda a hero and a role model. The kind of teacher she was, and it was on her web site that there are kids/people out there that if you asked them who made the most impact on them in their schooling and or life they would say Linda Abbott.
Linda was a role model, her sisters called her the one to look up to, to organize and to get things done. The sisters shared some of their memories with me,, from Susan,, One of Susan’s favorite memories of Linda was Linda being the older sister by 14 months and a going concern already when Susan was born and couldn’t wait for Susan to start crawling and walking so she could have someone to keep up with her. Linda was always grabbing , dragging and propping Susan up and because of Linda’s encouragement to walk on her own two feet,,, Susan,,, like she had a choice, was walking at 9 months of age and Linda’s propping and encouragement never stopped.
From Leslie the baby of the family. When Leslie was born Linda was 18 and in her 2nd year of University, Linda instilled the love of reading in Leslie, Leslie said she felt like she was Linda’s #1 test subject guinea pig for Linda’s one to one reading program and fondly remembers a childhood of Dr Seuss and Trixie Beldon and later Linda passing her love of fantasy books and her addiction to cozy mysteries. Linda was always available to mentor not just offering advice and a shoulder to cry on, but teaching choice theory so Leslie could learn to make those tough decisions on her own. If Leslie tried to reciprocate in appreciation for Linda’s kindness she had to resort to stealth and guile to pickup the bill at lunch or dinner. Leslie employed her best spy maneuvers to ambush the waiter or waitress to pay the bill before Linda found out. Not only did Linda have the fastest wallet in the west,, she was a thoughtful and loving guide. Linda was the catalyst in all the families she touched, her research into the genealogy of Bud’s family was amazing. I’ve seen her work at and with success to reconnect all of Buds children. We used Linda as measure of perfection on the boys , whenever they did something questionable, we would ask them what would your Grandmother think of that ,,it kept them grounded and they have grown up to be young men we are very proud of.
Linda was a role model in relationships for myself. Any of you that have spent any time in the Abbott house know that Bud is always cleaning and rearranging things,, especially in the kitchen. Linda took all of this in stride, if she went to look for something and it wasn’t there she would just call Bud and say this is what I need and it was here yesterday and now its not. Bud would answer yes I rearranged things and Linda would say could you please find it I need it. Off Bud would go to find it. I don’t know about you but there would be more words spoken in my house if something like that happen often. I looked at Linda after one of these exchanges and she looked at me and she said instead of sniping back and forth I believe that if you can’t say anything to improve your relationship don’t say it. Words I try to live by.
Linda Abbott, wife, mother, sister, step mother, grandmother, friend, mother in-law, role model, tour guide, educator, teacher, hostess, hero, women of the year.
Linda was an inspirational role model to everyone, no matter what circumstance, personal or professional Linda always made sure that your wants and needs were always looked after.
I said earlier that this was the third service that I’ve spoken at . The first there was spontaneous applause and it was wonderful, it made you feel great, the second he wanted to have the best damn service ever and we made it light and happy. Today at Linda’s celebration of life if you feel in your heart to do so please feel free to applaud Linda , just because she deserves it.
Thanks Philip, Miggs, and Nancy for the lovely tributes to Linda.
As much as we all would have liked to change the outcome we can’t. What we can do is honour the memory of Linda, through our actions, our thoughts how we treat our fellow man and if you aren’t sure about something always remember, what would your Gramma think.
I consider myself one of the fortunate people that has had Linda Abbott in their life.
On behalf of the family, Thank you for coming. The family is going out first and will be in the room just outside, the people in the reception room in the back will be first to go to pay their respects to the family, and the folks here can setup the room for the reception, if everyone in the chapel can remain seated until someone from the funeral home gives you direction. The family invites everyone to the reception in the back room, please feel free to share your stories about Linda with each other and the family we’d love to hear them.
Thanks again.
Bret Walters
