Linda Marie Bernack

Linda was born on January 30, 1940, in Vandalia, Illinois. Her father worked in the oil field, which meant her family moved around frequently when she was a child. They eventually landed in Drumright, OK, where she attended Drumright High School. This is where she met and married her first husband, Jarel Florence.

Jarel and Linda began their lives in Drumright then eventually moved to Cushing, OK, where their first child, Sheila Marie was born. A few years later, in Muskogee, OK, they welcomed their second child, Brian Lee and, two years later, their third child, Brett Dee. Jarel and Linda eventually settled on Beechwood Drive in Del City, OK. It was there Linda created the most magical of childhoods for her three children. She was a stay-at-home mom for years and a second mother to many on Beechwood. She kept busy by supporting her children in all facets of their lives, enjoyed University of Oklahoma football games, reading, painting, and caring for her mother. She later became a Merchandiser for Teter’s Floral Products and then moved on as a Chiropractic Assistant for Dr. Jim Muse, a position she held for years. Linda was married to Jarel for 30 years.

Linda met the love of her life in Ronald (Ron) Bernack. They moved into a tiny mobile home in Midwest City for the first six years of their relationship. In 1988, Linda married Ron in Eureka Springs, AR. In 1993, the couple moved to Grand Lake in Grove, OK, to the Cowskin Bluff Retirement Village. They spent the next 19 years here where Linda perfected her painting skills. Although she sold many of her masterpieces in Grove, it wasn’t unusual for her to give as many away.

Linda loved the lake. She often said Grove was the last place that felt like home. It was where she reconnected with her roots of long ago. Her maternal grandmother and grandfather had made their homestead in Grove, and she and her brother visited them often during their childhood days. Linda and Ron resided on Grand Lake until moving back to Midwest City in 2012 where she lived until the final years of her life. Ron preceded Linda in death in 2019. They were married for 30 years.

Linda was always smiling or laughing. She loved life and lived it to the fullest. Raising her children, she made sure holidays were filled with memories. Her favorite was the Fourth of July. Her celebration started bright and early in the morning. Lawn chairs and ice chests were dragged to the well-manicured front lawn. Across-the-street neighbors quickly joined. There was no waiting until dark. Pop bottle rockets were her favorite. Stories of wounds received by a stray rocket or a fizzled fuse are common, but never diminished her enjoyment of the holiday. After relocating to Grand Lake, she initiated all of the grandchildren and one great-grandchild into the Independence Day celebrations. It is fitting her Celebration of Life is being held on the Fourth of July weekend.

Linda was an avid reader and always had a book in her hands. Later, when her eyesight failed due to Macular Degeneration, she could be seen listening to audiobooks from the Library of the Blind. Her son, Brian, used to tell her she was the most well-read person he knew to not have a college degree.

Linda began painting in the 1970s. She was self-taught, eventually becoming an amazing artist. Her homes were full of gallery walls of her work. After Ron passed, she took up the hobby again following a long break. It was therapy for her and helped her cope with her loss. She wrote on the back of each painting after its completion, almost as if she knew one day she would get the exhibit she badly wanted. Her beautiful paintings will be on display at her reception, forever immortalized. Engraved on her plaque at her inurnment column, at her request, are the words “Would Be Artist.”

Linda loved life. She loved laughter and she liked to make people laugh. And, although she worried about her family, she always said, “I have three of the most wonderful children on the face of the Earth….how could I ever be sad?” Her greatest fear was being forgotten, but it is fear without merit. Linda will be remembered with love and humor by those she touched and the retelling of her life’s stories for decades to come.

She loved beauty, in all forms and she took time to notice. Whether that be a new baby, an aging parent, her family, art, music, a sunset on the water, a beautiful sunrise or the billowing white Oklahoma cumulus clouds which her failing eyesight so graciously spared, she noticed. Her humor and love was felt by all who knew her. Although no longer with us, her presence will carry on in her family for years to come.

Linda was preceded in death by her son Brian Florence, brother Gary Lee Shoupe, husband of 30 years, Ronald Bernack, stepson Ronnie Bernack and stepdaughter, Tryna Teague.

She is survived by her daughter Sheila Wilson and her husband Randy of Moore, OK, son Brett Florence of Midwest City, OK, daughters-in-law Trese Florence of Moore, OK and Heather Florence, of Colorado Springs, CO; grandchildren Dylan Wilson of Moore, OK, Chelsea Bright and husband James of Texarkana, TX, Tristan Florence and wife Sarah of Moore, OK, and Marjorie Florence of Colorado Springs, CO; great grandchildren Riley Wilson, Parker Wilson, Jackson Bright, and Hayes Bright; stepdaughters Marla Garbutt and husband Don of Midwest City, OK, Michelle Underwood and husband Steve of Yukon, OK, and stepson-in-law Ron Teague of Norman, OK, as well as a multitude of loving family, friends, and neighbors who will miss her dearly.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to the American Macular Degeneration Foundation (AMDF) to fund research, provide education, and offer support to those affected by macular degeneration.

A graveside service for Linda will be Saturday, July 5, 2025 at 10:00 AM at Sunset Memorial Park Cemetery, 2301 E Indian Hills Rd, Norman, OK 73071. A reception will follow at Primrose Funeral Services, 1109 N. Porter, Norman, OK 73071.