Linda S. Hardy

(Mary) Linda Sokoloski Hardy, beloved mother and friend, left the world on May 21, 2016 after an illness at the Applewood Rehabilitation Center, Winchester, NH.

Linda was born in Herkimer NY in 1935. She was, much to her chagrin, salutatorian of her high school class. She attended Albany State College for Teachers, and graduated with a BA in 1956. She taught high school English in Averill Park NY.

Linda married David A. Hardy in Albany in 1958. They had three children, all surviving. David M. of Boston MA, Lynne M. Pitts of Richmond, NH, and Jonathan C. of Houston TX. Linda had one grand-daughter, Jillian, also of Houston.

In addition to her children, grand-daughter, and two grand-cats, Linda is survived by four great-aunts, Mary Francis, Barbara, Carlynn, and Eileen (all nee Snedeker), and her ex-husband, as well as several nieces and nephews.

Linda was preceeded in death by her mother Bertha Katherine Snedeker Sokoloski, father Walter Francis Sokoloski, both of Herkimer NY, as well as her brothers Donald Francis and Alan John Sokoloski.

Linda’s professional life as a single parent included a stint at the Alfred NY Town Offices, and 22 years at the Herrick Memorial Library of Alfred University, Alfred NY. At the library, Linda was in her true element, surrounded by books, technology, and academia. She was an early proponent of computers and database work, developing several systems for the library’s inter-library loan department. Linda was an avid amateur genealogist and did a huge amount of documentation on ancestry.com for her family and friends. Linda also worked on the board of the Allegheny County Mental Health Association and was an early adovocate for the benefits of counseling.

She had a warm, brilliant wit and enjoyed word play, word puzzles, and bad puns. She was a voracious reader and journaler who devoured anything in print, a warm, loving supportive friend, and a woman of exceptional strength and courage. The world is a darker, sadder place without her.

Services will be private and burial will be held in New York.

Memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimers Association (https://act.alz.org/site/Donation2?df_id=3242&3242.donation=form1).