Linda Christine Waring (Szczesniak)

It is with profound sadness that we share the passing of our mother, Linda Christine Waring (Szczesniak), who left us on December 7, 2024, at the age of 75. Linda was born on May 13, 1949, in Detroit, the daughter of Clemens and Mary Szczesniak (Wegiel). Following graduation from St. David High School in 1967, she worked for The Greater Detroit Hospital Council and for Blue Cross Blue Shield. She spent a few years as a homemaker following the births of her three daughters and then returned to the workforce first as a human resources representative for Gantos and later as the office manager for Unist, both in Grand Rapids. She ultimately retired from her position at Unist after more than two decades. Linda is survived by her daughters, Cora Waring (Jason Lowry) of Ada, and Beth (Tim) Pospisil of Grand Rapids. She is also survived by her son-in-law, Adam VanGeest of Kentwood; her nine grandchildren, Alexis, Maren, William, Avery, Hadley, Archer, Alice, Sam, and Rowan; her sisters, Rosemary (Jack) Etrych, Marilyn (Rick) Zerod, and Kathleen (Kurt) Affholter; and brother, Clemens Szczesniak. She is preceded in death by her parents, her daughter, Anne VanGeest; and her brothers, David, Michael, and Anthony. Linda is best remembered for her love of Coca-Cola and black licorice as well as books and travel. She was a woman of playful spirit, whose vast imagination and capacity for pretend games shaped and delighted generations of children. She will be dearly missed. What follows is a small compilation of family memories. Daughter Cora will always remember her mother busting an impromptu move to some live-performance drumming in an NYC subway station. Granddaughter Alexis remembers going to hotels for weekends with Grandma, where they would shop for toys and snacks ahead of time and then spend the evenings making fake snow to throw on random cars or watching movies past midnight while they talked and ate sweets. Grandma always said she would dance at Lexi’s wedding, and Lexi knows that she will in her heart. Granddaughter Maren remembers playing with Grandma for hours and hours in a New Jersey hospital while they patiently waited for Maren’s little sister, Hadley, to be born. Grandson Will recalls window-shopping with Grandma at Spencer’s and how she always let him read the coffee mugs and t-shirts with explicit language on them. Grandson Avery remembers going to Chipotle with Grandma and how she always made funny jokes and told good stories. Granddaughter Hadley remembers Grandma taking her to multiple Five Belows to find as many different Squishmallows as possible. Granddaughter Archer had fun with Grandma when they went to the pool. She says that Grandma gave the best hugs and had the best personality. Granddaughter Alice loved that Grandma would buy a million plants and candles at Ikea. She always said she was only going to buy a few things, but then she always bought pretty much the whole store. Grandma will always have a special place in Alice’s heart. Grandson Sam loved going to visit Grandma at her house and how she always had a smile on her face. Grandson Rowan will love Grandma forever. Linda’s sister Rosemary remembers the fun and exciting times they had when they moved into their first apartment together. They were two young and adventurous girls striking out on their own and sharing their first taste of independence, dancing around in a little living room to music playing on a 45-record player. Linda was a constant and loyal sister and friend. They were in touch daily for years and always there for each other. Rosemary will love and miss Linda forever. Sister Marilyn says that Linda was the best sister ever and that they played so much together as kids. Linda had a great imagination and came up with many creative ideas. Old cigar boxes, for instance, became radios so they could be DJs. Marilyn will miss Linda very much. Niece Micaha, who is shy and introverted herself, always noticed how easy it was for Aunt Linda to make friends, and that when you were talking to her, you could tell she truly cared for you and acknowledged your feelings. Aunt Linda was the greatest aunt ever and will be missed very much. Son-in-law Jason remembers Linda’s visits to New York City, and how she used to bring toys for their dog Fred and made a game out of laying them all out in a straight line very slowly. Fred was expected to sit and wait patiently throughout this “game,” and he always did, even if he trembled with excitement the entire time. A service of remembrance will be held Saturday May 3, 2025 at 1:00 pm at the Arsulowicz Brothers Remembrance Mortuary, 3525 Remembrance Rd NW. Linda’s family will receive visitors Saturday May 3, 2025 from 12 noon until the time of the service. Gifts may be made in Linda’s memory to C-SNIP of Grand Rapids online at csnip.org or Luvnpups of Grand Rapids online at luvnpupz.org.

Tributes

Linda Christine Waring (Szczesniak)

May 13, 1949 - December 7, 2024