Linda Marie Bellinger

Linda was a teacher. She taught as a profession, and she taught by her very being.. My first assignment at TDSA was subbing for Linda. She’s taken a fall and they called me in. I didn’t know that day would bring someone so special into my life. Over the nine years I had the honor of knowing Linda, I watched her turn piles of bark chips in to Indian burial mounds; a place to search for buried pirate treasure. Linda never failed to ignite the children’s imagination and she instilled a love of science in her students. Linda was the total package in teaching.

But more than being a role model in the classroom, Linda was a role model in life. She didn’t know the meaning of the words “I can’t”. She was always there when you needed her. She never turned down a person in need. Linda had a delicious sense of humor and I am bereft knowing that I will not hear her laugh or get a chance to laugh at her observations. Linda was one in a million and I will always be grateful for our friendship.

Jim, Jamie, Alan, my thought and prayers are with you at this time and for always.
Erica

From the day Linda gave her model lesson for Torah Day School, she was the most unflappable person I’ve ever met. She not only rolled with the punches, she did it with a laugh, a shrug and a philosophical “Oh, well”. In class, her creativity enveloped the children in the sheer joy of learning by doing. Her experiments with simple machines made of books and ropes, or boxes, wheels and wedges lit them up. They drew community maps on the back of floor rugs then added their own homes and favorite buildings. Every photo we have of her teaching shows children actively engaged in growing and learning. Linda’s own gentle kindness and thoughtfulness created a loving and accepting environment for everyone around her- child and adult alike.
I enjoyed knowing her only for the school days of nearly a decade. To her family and friends of many days and decades, I send my heartfelt condolences on the loss of a remarkable lady.

Jim and Family,

Please know our hearts go out to you.

If you remember, Linda was our third and fourth sons’ first grade teacher at Torah Day School. Nate and Josh agree with us that she was one of the best teachers any of our four sons have ever had.

She embodied all that was important in teaching – thoughtful appreciation for kids and the different ways they learn, warmth, guidelines – the kids knew what to expect in Linda’s class. She was creative and made learning fun. She was also selfless and happily mentored other teachers, in her quiet way. She also worked with parents to develop ways of learning with their children.

Nate, who is now 17 years old, told me today that Linda taught him how to spell the word chat. He remembers being stumped and Linda working with him through the week. She made quite an impression for him to remember it 10 years later.

Linda really made a difference in our lives and in the lives of her students. Thank you for sharing her with us.

Dear Family Bellinger;
Please accept our sympathy at the passing of your wife and mom. We are sure that following her long illness it is a blessing that she no longer suffers.
You can take comfort in how you cared for her so long and lovingly. No one could have done better.

We loved and admired her dearly. It was a pleasure knowing Linda. She was an amazing person.
She will be deeply missed
Dena Friedman and Esther Lubel co-workers at TDSA
Come Along With Me
G-d saw you getting tired, And a cure was not to be. So he put his arms around you, and whispered, “Come along with me.” With tearful eyes we watched you slowly fade away. Although we loved you dearly, we knew you couldn’t stay. A golden heart stopped beating, working hands were put to rest. G-d broke my heart to prove to us, he only takes the best. Anon

Its hard to believe Linda is gone and will no longer be teaching and touching children at our school. Meeting the needs of her students was priority number one for Linda, and she was always was ready to do whatever it took to find a way to reach her students. Whether she was teaching first grade or fifth, this was always her priority.
Dedicated, responsible, goal oriented – those were words to describe Linda as a teach . She struggled with finding the right strategy for each and every one of her students, because she wanted them to succeed. Linda was the kind of teacher who took her student’s struggles home.
Linda will always be remembered for the kindness she showed to others.
We will miss her quiet ways, her sincere smile, her willingness to help others. Nothing was ever too hard for Linda, an it was a pleasure to work with her these past years. The hundreds of children and families she has touched during her lives will never forget her, and are grateful for all she has taught them.
May her memory be a blessing to her family.

Dear Jim and family, I am so very saddened by the passing of my dear friend Linda. She was a true friend to so many. She was a wonderful teacher and I am so lucky to have worked with her for so many years. I have so many sweet memories of our time together. One of my favorites was we had just that year moved into our present building, at our “line-up” one Friday morning Linda was sapping her fingers and singing to herself. I asked her what she was so excited about and in a sing song voice she replied” It’s Shobbos, it’s Shobbos!’. My time with her was always a pleasure, we got along together so well and worked so well together.I will never forget her and will always miss her,Linda’s quiet and unassuming ways often kept her uniqueness and humor hidden, but she had an abundance of both. Words cannot truly say all that I feel for Linda.and her loss. My heart and my love go out to you all, Marlene Chastain