June 20, 1945 – October 10, 2022
Linda Louise Jones, 77, of Stockton, California passed away on October 10, 2022 in Carlsbad, California. She was born on June 20, 1945 to Frank and Marie (Wingate) Spiekermann in Tilden, Nebraska. She grew up in that area, attending Bunker Hill Elementary, a one room K-8 school house in the country, and Tilden High School ’63.
She then went on to the University of Nebraska and became the first in her family to graduate from college, earning a bachelor’s degree in Spanish with a minor in history. This is also where she met her future husband of 54 years, Corwin. After graduating from UNL, they were married and moved to southern California, where she became an elementary school teacher and a few years later welcomed their first child, Sharon. She helped support the family while her husband went back to school to transition from electrical engineering to dentistry. In 1976, they moved to Stockton, California to start Corwin’s dental practice, and a month later welcomed their second child, Bryan. Stockton was their home for the next 45 years, having one more child, Melinda.
Linda took a break from teaching, shifting her focus to raising her family, with many years also helping in Corwin’s dental practice. Linda rarely missed a game, performance or awards ceremony and often volunteered in her children's classrooms. After her children graduated high school, she went back to teaching, this time teaching first grade at Colonial Heights, until she retired in 2010. In 2005, she was awarded one of the highest honors, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National PTA, a first for any teacher at her school. She had a tremendous impact on so many lives. Linda was described by a principal she worked with as a model of motherhood, teaching, and matrimonial devotion.
Although many knew her as their teacher, she was also a talented piano player since her youth. Her children always knew she was in a good mood when she sat at the piano and started to play. She shared her love of music and passed it on to her children with piano lessons and choir at school and church. All three of her children sang in the Chamber Ensemble in high school, and she was at all of the performances, helping with extra practice, if needed. She also loved holidays, sharing traditions, decorating and creating magical moments for her children.
Linda was preceded in death by her husband, Corwin Jones (passed November 7, 2021) and parents Frank and Marie Spiekermann of Tilden, Nebraska; and survived by her children, Sharon Hughes (Chris) of Fremont, California, Bryan Jones (Shari) of Fallbrook, California, Melinda Decker (Bill Sunick) of Malvern, Pennsylvania; her grandchildren, Lauren and Jared Hughes, who are both in college; her brothers, Rich Spiekermann (Carol) of Peoria, Illinois, and Charles Spiekermann (Linda) of Redondo Beach, California and many special extended family members.
SERVICES:
Her service will be held on Monday November 7, 2022 at 1:00pm in the Vineyard Chapel at Cherokee Memorial Park in Lodi, California.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association or Hospice of San Joaquin.