Linda Joan Unrue

Linda Joan Unrue, devoted wife of the late Thomas "Drew" Unrue, Sr. for 47 years, passed away on November 1, 2024.
Loving mother of Dr. Stacey Vandenberg (Andrew), Kelly Shamyer (Robert), Thomas Jr. and Dana Evans (Curtis). Proud grandmother of Lukas, Jakob, Nathan, Logan, Sophia, and Maya. Dear sister of Denise Watson (Robert), Scott Stinson (Crenia), Mark Stinson (the late Terri), and Michael Stinson (Carol).
Linda Joan (nee Stinson) Unrue was born on January 14, 1949, in Hamtramck, Michigan to Walker Stinson and Willine (nee Collins) Stinson. Linda was the proud older sister of Denise Watson, Scott Stinson, Michael Stinson, and Mark Stinson, whom she shared many happy and warm memories throughout her life. She grew up in Madison Heights, Michigan, where she attended Madison High School.
Linda became an Administrative Secretary with Madison High School where she also coached Cheerleading and was a swimming trainer for over five years.
Linda married Drew in March 1975 and raised their family in Troy, Michigan. The family moved to Sterling Heights, Virginia in September 1978 when Drew was transferred to the Presidential Protection Division of the U.S. Secret Service. Linda supported a loving and humorous home for her four children to grow up in while maintaining a tight ship. The family returned to Troy, Michigan in the summer of 1983 when Drew was transferred back to the Detroit Field Office. Linda returned to her career as an Administrative Secretary at Athens High School, where she built treasured friendships and stayed until her retirement in 2000.
Linda enjoyed her family, the holidays, and playing a competitive game of Pinochle and Bridge with the neighbors and her friends. She loved boating with Drew and the grandkids, summer parties, and get-togethers with her many dear friends, Gay and Rudy, and Pat and Rex, to name a few, through the years. If anyone called her at 2 pm EST, she would not answer her phone being the loyal General Hospital fan that she was. She was a true lover of Southern cooking and made a tasty plate of biscuits & gravy and beans with cornbread, if you came over to her house before Noon on many Saturdays. She honored her Southern heritage. Linda was never without her Sweet Tea made fresh daily.
She loved seeing a sunset on the beach whenever she got the chance. Linda loved to travel. Her experiences in Europe, Ireland, Jamaica, and Hawaii brought her great joy to learn and see new ways of living. She really enjoyed traveling to see her children and grandchildren in New Jersey, Arizona, and South Carolina, and she always looked forward to the sunsets on Lake Michigan. Some of her best memories are her travels to Florida spending time with her family, Vicki and Richard, and Kerm and Jackie. The laughter between them was contagious.
Linda was a loving, humorous and an adventurous Grandma to Luke, Jake, Nathan, Logan, Sophia, and Maya. She spent her retirement years attending her grandchildren's sporting events, recitals, graduations, and making memories. She loved annual traditions such as playing a mean game of Putt Putt Golf with all of her grandchildren in the summer, making memory books to capture their adventures, collecting Hallmark Christmas ornaments, and making each of them feel special whenever she saw them.
Linda was a loving, fun, loyal, dependable, smart, adventurous, and tenacious woman with a great smile, known at times for sharing her non-filtered, although maybe accurate, point of view. She was an incredible Mother, a devoted Wife, an honored Sister, and a cherished Friend. Her presence will be missed beyond measure.
Family will receive friends on Sunday, November 3, 2024 from 1:00pm-5:00pm at A.J. Desmond & Sons Funeral Home 2600 Crooks Rd (between Maple/Big Beaver) Troy, MI 48084.
A funeral service will be held at the funeral home on Monday, November 4, 2024 at 10:00am.
Burial will take place next to her beloved Drew at White Chapel Cemetery.