Linda L. Whitten: A Tribute
Continuing a tribute for Linda L. Whitten, A Member of the SIME~GEN WELCOMMITTEE, cartoonist, fanzine contributor, who passed away in May, 2004 after a long battle with breast cancer. The entry page to Linda L. Whitten: A Tribute
Part of A Companion in Zeor
Remembrances, for inclusion, can be e-mailed to Karen MacLEOD
Jean Lorrah's Thoughts
Linda's contributions to Sime~Gen fandom will remain as a reminder of her many years of activity. We will always be grateful that she was both a friend and a fan.
Her courage the past few years was amazing--she never lost her good humor despite her illness.
Linda will be sorely missed.
Jean
Linda Whitten -- Bold and Beautiful
Here is a woman who valued the supreme lesson of service. She came into any group or organization prepared to volunteer, to take responsibilities seriously, and to serve the group's common objective. She chose groups with her own personal objectives and threw her whole heart into the cause -- whatever the cause was.
And so she gave herself to the daunting task of managing the Sime~Gen Welcommittee. But even when she retired from that, she stayed with us. As you've noted by now, she had a sense of humor that could salvage almost any flagging spirit. She could see the funny side of things, and kept us all laughing not just at ourselves but at the humor of the divine spirit that runs this universe. Back in the snail-mail days, every envelope from Linda was elaborately decorated with chuckles she hand-drew, no two envelopes alike. So much original art lost now, though these were saved.
She always put herself where her values led her. This is not honesty, though she had that. It is integrity that goes bone deep and shapes the very soul. And so she was moved to leave a high paying job in a Los Angeles office (a nylons-and-high-heels type job) and follow her own star, her dreams.
She held a succession of more flexible jobs, trained for this and that, -- capable of learning almost anything. She gave up looking for high income and chose jobs that would let her be herself.
Along that journey, she found neopaganism (or perhaps it found her) and she hit that point of sheer recognition that she'd found her home at last.
At the point where it seemed she had settled down at a comfortable place to live a full and rich life, her health failed her and she once again moved on to her next adventure.
I suspect she'll never stay anywhere for very long. The gypsy in me recognizes a kindred spirit and the artist in me recognizes a beautiful heart beating true. I miss her deeply.
Jacqueline Lichtenberg
Arizona, 2004
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