Linda D. Molloy

Linda (Dankese) Molloy

June 22, 1949 – November 25, 2025

On the evening of November 25, 2025, Linda Diane (Dankese) Molloy, age 76, slipped from this world as softly as dusk folds into night, surrounded by the family whose love was her constant light.

Born on a sweet summer day in 1949 to the late Linda and Mercurio Dankese, Linda grew up in Lexington with radiant curiosity and a reverence for learning. As a child, Linda loved school and was deeply inspired by the teachers who lit a flame in her that never dimmed - a flame that lit the path to becoming an educator herself - a calling she prepared for through her studies at Lexington High School, Boston College, Tufts University, and Fitchburg State University.

Linda taught English and World Literature at Billerica Memorial High School for 36 years, opening the doors of imagination for generations of students, ushering them into the shimmering worlds of story. She found great joy in helping students discover the beauty of classic works such as The Great Gatsby, Moby Dick, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Leaves of Grass, and The Old Man and the Sea. She cherished sharing the philosophies of literary titans including Thoreau, Shakespeare, Dickens, Hemingway, Whitman, and Twain - guiding young minds toward the truths hidden in the pages. In her later years, former students often reached out to express their love and gratitude, reminding Linda that her fingerprints never faded from the lives she touched - proof that the imprints of a good teacher deepen with time.

She also believed in the power of kindness put into action, as she developed and led the Community Service Program at BMHS, running fundraisers at the Cam Neely House and Ronald McDonald House. She treasured her three-plus decades in the classroom, where she formed lifelong friendships with colleagues and students.

Linda's creativity flowed beyond the classroom - as she became the co-chair of the Wilmington Arts Council, a dedicated watercolor painter, landscape photographer, and poet. Yet of all her roles, she cherished most being a devoted wife, loving mother, grandmother, and friend. Her children, John and Justin, were her heart's compass; and over the years eight loyal German Shepherds found a home in her gentle care (Shadow, Gina, Comet, Kayla, Sasha, Bella, Ember, and Luna).

She found wonder in the wider world when traveling with her family to Sperlonga, Italy - her mother's birthplace; the warm shores of Sanibel Island and Saint Martin; the rugged beauty of Scarborough and Kennebunkport; the charm of Quebec City.

Linda leaves behind her beloved husband, John - her partner of 54 years and her heart's companion since the high school math class where their story began six decades ago. Together they built a life in their Wilmington home, filling it with laughter, books, happy wagging dog tails, and love. She is survived by her son John and daughter-in-law Kuan-yin, and grandchildren Jack and Lilliana; and by her son Justin and daughter-in-law Meerim, and grandchildren Kai and Ivy.

Through life, she would remind her children to seize each day: "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, Old Time is still a-flying; And this same flower that smiles today, Tomorrow will be dying." "Carpe diem, boys," she'd say. Learn how short our lives are, so that we can become wise.

Linda's love, deep wisdom, and luminous spirit will echo forever in the lives she touched - shimmering through time like tides of light, enduring as the written word. In the hearts of those she loved, her story lives on, unending.

Family and friends are invited to attend visiting hours at the Nichols Funeral Home, 187 Middlesex Avenue, Wilmington, MA on Tuesday December 2nd from 4:00-7:00pm.

A Graveside Funeral Service will be held on Wednesday December 3rd at 11:30am at Puritan Lawn Memorial Park - 185 Lake St, Peabody, MA in the Thoreau Meadows section of the park.