Linda was raised in Fargo, ND by her parents, Esther and Paul Corder, along with her siblings Don, Shirl, and David. They moved to Kansas City while she was young, and she graduated from Shawnee Mission High School (now Shawnee Mission North).
Linda fell in love with Ed Schmiedeler, and the two were married in 1963. They started their family in Mission with two sons, Marty and Nick. Soon, they moved their growing family to Prairie Village and added Susan and Dan. The family attended St. Ann’s Church. Linda ran the household, which was always full of love and loaded with liveliness. She took a job at St. Ann’s and was a consistent happy presence in the school office.
Later, Linda worked for and retired from the Kemper Group. During that time, her family grew again when she met and married Tom Evans. She loved and cared for Tom for 21 years until he passed in 2011. She looked forward to seeing him again.
Linda loved birds, gardening, fishing, camping, and anything else outdoors. She loved crossword puzzles and was an excellent wordsmith. She loved having children, and later, she loved spending time with her grandchildren and two great-grandsons. Linda always shared a smile and kind words, even when she wasn’t feeling up to it.
Linda was preceded in death by her husband, Tom, but also her brother, Don Corder, and their parents, Esther and Paul Corder. She is survived by her sister Shirl (“Aunt Shirley”), and brother David (Sheri) Corder, both of Overland Park.
Linda will be deeply missed by the family she leaves behind - her four children: Marty (Ann) Schmiedeler of Topeka, Nick (Cindy) Schmiedeler of Lawrence, Susan (Scott) Fears of Shawnee and Dan (Jen) Schmiedeler of New York City. She was loved by 8 grandchildren: Kelsey (Caleb), Anthony, Perry (Bailey), Cooper, Goldie, Harrison, Marta, Henry, as well as two great-grandsons, Cannon and Ike.
Also mourning her passing are Tom’s children, Wendy (Vance) Colling of Shawnee and Robin (Gary) Reiswig of Wichita and 8 more grandchildren, who knew and loved her as their grandmother. Linda was a constant positive presence who enjoyed life to the fullest.
Her graveside service will be at 1:00 pm, Wednesday, May 12th, 2021 at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery, 8321 Quivira Road, Lenexa, KS.
In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Linda Evans may be made to TARC, Inc., ATTN: Development at 2701 SW Randolph Ave., Topeka, KS 66611 or online at https://tarcinc.org/donate-to-tarc/
