Linda Lee Buelow, 74, of Manitowish Waters and North Port, Fl.,
passed away peacefully surrounded by family on Oct. 11, 2017, at Howard Young Medical center in Minocqua following a lengthy battle with ovarian cancer
Linda was born in West Allis on July 23, 1943, to Frank B. and Dorothy (Barden) Elliott. She was a 1961 graduate of West Allis Central High School. In June 1961, she married her life-long sweetheart and partner, Don Herbert Buelow in West Allis. Linda and Don had four children and lived on the southwest side of Milwaukee until relocating to East Troy in 1971.
Linda achieved her lifelong goal of becoming a Registered Nurse in 1981 when she graduated from Milwaukee County School of Nursing. She eventually achieved certification in Obstetric Nursing. She served as a labor and delivery RN at Memorial Hospital of Burlington where she delighted in helping families welcome countless new lives into the world. In 1994, Linda and Don made the move to Florida, where she worked as a Labor and Delivery RN at Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers until her retirement in 1998.
Linda had a lifelong passion for music. She developed at an early age into an accomplished musician, playing both piano and organ. She played for many Job’s Daughters, DeMolay, and Masonic functions and ceremonies in the 1950s and 1960s, taught piano in her home, served as organist and sometimes choir director at many churches in Wisconsin and Florida, provided music at countless weddings and funerals, and was an accomplished accompanist for musical competitions as well as musical stage productions. She continued to play piano into the last weeks of her life. She enjoyed quilting and sewing, providing countless beautiful baby quilts and decorative items for family and friends.
Linda will be missed by her husband of 56 years, Don; sister Suzanne (Elliott) Langsten; and her children Laurie (Eric) Schaefgen, Donna (John) Young, Terri (Ted) Bangs, and Matthew (Michelle) Buelow. She is further survived by her beloved grandchildren, Andrew (Lisa), Zachary, and Emily Schaefgen, Nicholas and Christina Huntress, Megan and Mason Buelow, and Rob (Clare), Dan, and Mitchell Young; and great-grandchildren, Levi, Corinne, Elliott, and Harvey Schaefgen, and Parker Young.
Linda had a great passion for the stories of Dr. Kate Newcomb, and her work as an early medical care provider in the rural Vilas County Area, as well as the story of the Million Penny parade in 1953, held as a fundraiser for the Dr. Kate Hospital. This eventually transitioned into the current Howard Young Medical Center in Woodruff, Wisconsin. It is fitting that Linda spent the last days of her life there, and her family is thankful for the skilled and compassionate care she received in the ICU.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, Oct. 21, 2017, at 10 a.m. at Millard Community Church, N6713 Co Hwy O, Elkhorn. Lunch to follow.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Howard Young Medical Center in Woodruff, Wisconsin, or the American Cancer Society.
Bolger Funeral Home of Minocqua is serving the family. Well-wishers may visit www.bolgerfuneral.com.
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