Linda M. Stewart

Linda Faye Montgomery Stewart was born on February, 23, 1951 to Wilford and Ruthie Mae Montgomery in Montgomery, Alabama. Nicknamed “Lynn” by her family, Linda was the third child, right in the middle of Will and Ruth’s brood that would eventually total five. As the middle child Lynn developed many life skills. She admired and looked up to her two older, talented, and opinionated sisters, Margaret and Bettye, developing keen listening skills as a result. Lynn nurtured and mentored her two younger siblings, Madelyn and Yogi, as she had been nurtured. As the babysitter of her younger siblings during summer break, Lynn’s culinary skills blossomed. She easily turned ordinary pantry staples into dishes like jambalaya. Will and Ruth made sure each of their children had strong Christian upbringings. Linda attended Holt Street Baptist Church in Montgomery weekly, accepted Christ, and was baptized at an early age. She sang in the youth choir and regularly attended Sunday School and the Baptist Training Union.

During Linda’s preschool years, Ruth volunteered at Saint Jude Catholic School in Montgomery where Margaret and Bettye were students. Linda was always in tow and soon the nuns recognized the capabilities of the precocious preschooler. The nuns and Ruth both agreed Linda had the intellect and maturity to begin first grade at the age of four. Linda would attend Saint Jude for 12 years, graduate, and matriculate to Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) at the age of 16.

At Tuskegee Linda earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education and a Master of Education all by the age of 21. She met Robert Lee “Bobby” Stewart on her first day at Tuskegee. He was hanging out, checking out the freshmen girls as they checked into their dorms, and trying to earn extra money unloading cars from the incoming class. He agreed to help Ruth and Linda carry Linda’s belongings (including a heavy steamer trunk) to her room on the third floor (no elevator) of the dorm. When he learned that Linda’s name was Montgomery and that she was from Montgomery, Alabama, he was impressed. Ruth was not having it and left him no tip after he completed the move-in. Ruth told Bobby that he didn’t need to know her daughter’s name because her daughter was there to get an education! Well Linda did get an education, but that education came with Bobby. The couple married after Linda completed her senior year – by that time Ruth loved Bobby like a son.

Upon completing each of their degrees, both secured teaching positions with Dekalb County Schools and settled in Decatur, GA. Linda began her professional career with Dekalb County Schools as a special education teacher in 1972. After six years of teaching, Linda became a Lead Teacher of Special Education. Linda and Bobby were overjoyed as their family increased with the births of their son Robert Lemar Stewart and their daughter Allison Leanne Stewart. Being working parents, they were supported most in raising the children by Bobby’s parents, Abner and Elsie Stewart, who lived close by. Linda spent thirty years as an educator in Dekalb County and retired in 2002.

Linda cultivated and honed her passions for interior design, cooking, and entertaining with a certain sense of style throughout her life, following her mother’s love for the same. She had an eye for aesthetics, beautiful things, and expressed herself through the design and décor of the homes that she and Bobby created for their family. When one home was complete and just perfect, Linda and Bobby would start over again with a new home, a new project, while creating a space of comfort and joy for themselves, Robby and Allison. She looked for beauty and vibrancy in all the selections for her home and clothing alike. Linda rarely wore taupe or beige – turquoise, fuchsia, teal, and orange were the colors of her life. She even made wall to wall peach carpet look good – inviting and warm!

More important to Linda than great design aesthetics was her love of family and lifelong friendships. From childhood and throughout her career, Linda attracted friends whom she nurtured and consistently cared for. She was not only a loyal friend, but the ultimate connector. She always introduced her great friends to other great people she thought they should know. The height of Linda’s enjoyment was entertaining others in the jubilant homes that she and Bobby created. Holidays and the Super Bowl parties were a treat for those invited into the Stewart home. Christmas dinners always included fantastic dishes adorned with fresh fruits and herbs that were as delicious as they were camera ready! Linda didn’t just read stacks magazines, she lived it.

On February 7, 2018, Linda was met in a joyful reunion with Will and Ruth, Margaret and Bettye, and Abner “Papa” and Elsie. She leaves her legacy of love for family and friends to her husband of 48 years, Bobby; her son Robby; her daughter Allison; her sister Madelyn (Reginald) Grant; her brother, Wilbur “Yogi” (Sharon) Montgomery; her nephews, Albert Berry, II and Allen Grant; her nieces, Kia (John) Hagens, Shannon Grant, Taylor Montgomery, and Sydney Montgomery; her grandnieces, Lane and Kennedy Hagens; her spiritual mentor, Mr. Herman Harris, and her lifelong friends and extended family.