Linda Willis' Obituary
Linda Dianne Willis passed into the arms of the Lord on the 9th of May, 2023 surrounded by her loving family. She was born on the 31st of December, 1948 in Dallas, TX as the eldest of three daughters born to Robert Willis and Billa Stovall Willis. She is survived by her mother Billa Willis, her sisters Judy Willis and Nancy Willis Horiates, her brother-in-law Dimitrios Horiates, her niece Marina Horiates Kerekes, her nephew Nectarios Horiates, and a large extended family. Linda Dianne is preceded in death by her father, Robert “Bob” Willis.
After spending her early childhood in Dallas, Linda Dianne moved with her family to North Brunswick, NJ in 1960. She was accepted to the Miss Fine’s School of Princeton, NJ in 10th grade, where she was successfully nominated as a representative for the national AFS Intercultural Program. Through this program, she spent the summer of her 11th grade living with a beautiful and generous family in Malaysia, learning about Malay culture. This experience sparked her love of traveling, a passion she pursued throughout her life. Linda Dianne graduated from the Miss Fine’s - Princeton Day School in 1967.
Linda Dianne was an excellent student and writer, and she went on to study English, first at Randolph Macon Women’s College and later graduating with her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Texas at Dallas. In addition, she studied Art and Philosophy at The New School in New York City. She worked in writing and editing throughout her career, from her role as a legal assistant to her later work in transcriptions and copy editing. She was a gifted researcher, and she extensively chronicled the genealogy of the Willis and Stovall families, successfully tracing the family line to the American Revolution, the first colonial settlement in Jamestown, Virginia, and even to an ancestor buried in Westminster Abbey. This research enabled the women of her family to join the Daughters of the American Revolution, a deeply impactful experience for both herself and her mother, sisters, and niece.
Linda Dianne took great joy in helping to raise her niece and nephew, Marina and Nectarios Horiates. When they were very young, she specifically trained in Montessori education in order to teach them to read while caring for them to support her sister and brother-in-law during the week. She passed her love of words on to her niece Marina, who went on to follow the footsteps of her “Aunt Diney,” completing her Bachelor of Arts in English Language & Literature at Yale University.
Linda Dianne was brilliant, beautiful, and deeply loved. Her wit, her generosity, and her stories will be dearly missed.
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