For Linda Kay.

In loving memory · 1947–2026

Linda Kay.

A kind heart.
A fierce spirit.
And a little sarcasm.

A place to remember our mom. To share the love, the stories, and the laughter. And to keep living with a little of her in everything we do.

Remembering Mom
Linda smiling outdoors, wearing a pink knit cardigan.
Our mom. Always.

Death is nothing at all.

It does not count. I have only slipped away into the next room. Nothing has happened. Everything remains exactly as it was. I am I, and you are you, and the old life that we lived so fondly together is untouched, unchanged.

Whatever we were to each other, that we are still. Call me by the old familiar name. Speak of me in the easy way which you always used. Put no difference into your tone. Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow.

Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes that we enjoyed together. Play, smile, think of me, pray for me. Let my name be ever the household word that it always was. Let it be spoken without an effort, without the ghost of a shadow upon it.

Life means all that it ever meant. It is the same as it ever was. There is absolute and unbroken continuity. What is this death but a negligible accident?

Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight? I am but waiting for you, for an interval, somewhere very near, just round the corner.

All is well.

Henry Scott Holland 1847–1918

An excerpt from his sermon The King of Terrors
St Paul’s Cathedral, London · May 15, 1910

Read the original sermon

Shared with love

Words of comfort.

A passage shared by Shirley, with love.

Read “Grief Is Like Glitter”

From our family album

Mom, through the years.

All the photos
Linda as a baby wearing a bonnet and small shoes.

Little Linda.1 / 84

Swipe or use the arrows to turn the page.

Linda Kay Gaylord passed away on September 8, 2026, at the age of 78. She was born on November 7, 1947.

To us, she was Mom or Gigi. Stern and loving, with a kind heart and a fierceness that helped her raise three children on her own through some tough times. She helped each of us whenever she could. When she couldn’t help the way she wanted to, she told us to get it done and made sure we knew she believed in us.

Mom would light up when she saw us. She was playful, quick with sarcasm, and always ready to have a little fun. Even as her body and mind began to fail, she still did her best to laugh and be playful when she could.

She loved getting out and about. She also loved popsicles and ice cream, right to the very end. For reasons we still do not understand, later in her years, she switched from butter pecan to coffee ice cream. We remain baffled.

She is survived by her daughters, Cynthia Plitt and Nona Isbell, and her favorite child, her son, Jason Bates. Jason is writing this, which should probably be taken into account. Mom would have gotten a kick out of it.

She is also survived by her grandchildren, Kiera, Isabella, Blake, and Dalton, and her great-grandchildren, Kaden, Kinsley, and Phoebe.

Her life and her presence were a gift, and we will be forever grateful for being able to call her Mom or Gigi. We will keep moving forward while living, loving, and laughing. That is who we are, and who she raised us to be.

We will miss her so very dearly.

With love, her Family

The places ahead

Taking Mom along.

She wanted to be at the beach. We’ll share the places we take her ashes, and the memories we make along the way.

Follow the journey The love she leaves with us

Something you
remember.

A story, a thank-you, a little moment that stayed with you. There’s a place for it here.

Visit the wall of love