Stephen L. DiPietro
We are so saddened by the passing of Linda.. Please accept our profound and deep sympathies on your loss. She was a gracious lady; kind and caring, warm and sincere. It has been our privilege over the years to know and love, Linda Baker. We met Linda and Mike over 25 years ago through our sons, Michael and Stephen, a friendship which has endured to this day. From the outset it was apparent that Linda was a woman of exceptional character and substance who infused a genuine love in everything she did. Armed with a gentility and an uncommon grace, she captured the essence of what it meant to be a loving mother, neighbor, friend, and to her beloved, Michael, a life long spouse and partner. She was blessed with an enduring faith and deep rooted spirituality which shaped her life's view and permitted her to see opportunity where others saw challenges. We shall treasure our memories of her always, and they will be beautiful ones indeed capturing the loveliness, wisdom and gentle humor that was Linda. St. Francis de Sales tells us that, "...there is nothing so strong as true gentleness, and nothing so gentle as true strength". For us that is Linda’s essence. We pray for her always as she joins her beloved mother in heaven.
To Michael Sr and Michael, we cannot imagine the swirl of emotions that you both must be experiencing, we can only conjecture. Sometimes what may move through you during this period is a silence, a quiet sadness, a longing for one more day, one more word, one more touch with her. You may not now, or ever, understand why Linda left this earth so soon, or why Linda left before you, her friends or her relatives were ready to say good-bye, but little by little as you have already done through the comfort of friends and family you will begin to remember not just that Linda died, but that she lived for 73 extraordinary years, touching others through her kindness, her generosity and her self-sacrifice for those whom she loved and held dear. We are certain that Linda gave you memories too beautiful to ever forget. Treasure those and the all too brief slice of time that she was able to make them. Both time and life keep a dear school indeed, and once again God has shown us through His calling Linda home what is for us way too soon, that life is both fragile and fleeting, full of joy and dampened by sorrow, temporary yet eternal. The comfort we share is in knowing that we are never alone - not when the night is darkest, the wind the coldest, nor the world seemingly most indifferent. Take comfort in knowing that someone so special as Linda will never be forgotten.
We are so sorry for your loss. Our wish for you is to take comfort from friends and family now, and please if there is anything we can do for you both, we are just a phone call away from being of help. Although no words can really help to ease the loss you bear, just know that you and Linda are very close in our every thought and prayer. Our heart is with you, from one family to another, in your time of sorrow. We loved Linda. She was an exceptional and gracious lady to be sure, and we shall treasure the time that we knew her, clothed in the gratitude of knowing that hers was a life well lived albeit tragically short.
Steve and Teresa DiPietro
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