Rhoda Lindner

RICHMOND, IN– Rhoda Lindner grew up in the Boston, Massachusetts area with two parents (Sam and Bella) and one sister (Tova). Rhoda was tenacious, eager to learn, and independent from her first day to her last.
Rhoda graduated high school and left her parents' home at the age of 16, a rare thing in those days. She worked two jobs to make ends meet so she could afford her very own apartment, and she started college.
She lived in Boston and later New York City - happily embracing a bigger world. She liked to go out to fancy dinners in the city, balancing how hard she worked. As a very young woman she worked as an executive secretary. When she resigned to start graduate school in Indiana, her boss had to hire three people to complete the work she had been doing.
In Indiana, Rhoda enrolled at Indiana University in Bloomington to earn her PhD in Psychology. She loved it. And she met Bill Lindner who turned out to be in the same PhD program. They met in the elevator on the way to class one early morning. They were tired and a bit worn out, but they noticed each other. And then they fell in love. Within a couple of years, they married. And then they had one child, a daughter named Laura.
Upon graduation, they relocated to Southern California to become professors at two different universities, living about halfway in between. Rhoda adored her work - teaching, the research she was able to do in her very own lab, her colleagues, and the challenge of it all.
Rhoda loved living in Fullerton, California, a growing city that still had a small-town feel. She loved watching baseball, hearing Laura play music on a variety of instruments, talking with and loving Bill, making roasts that simmered in the oven to make for an easy dinner in the late afternoon, and floating around in the pool on a hot day.
Later in life, she and Bill divorced after 36 years of marriage. She moved away to find a new independence and was happy in Laguna, CA. She knew her neighbors well, was active in the community, went to classical music concerts, listened to opera as she puttered around the house, and walked for hours every day.
Several years later, she met Bob Green, and they fell in love. They had many wonderful adventures together - buying a motor home and traveling all around, playing Scrabble, and generally just enjoying being a happy, easy-going couple. When Bob died, she was sad, and increasingly lonely. Conquering some medical issues, Rhoda decided she was ready for "one last big adventure". And that's when she moved to Indiana.
For the last year and a half, Rhoda lived in Friends Fellowship's main building in her own apartment. She was still fiercely independent, getting to know new people, getting her nails painted so pretty, going to the symphony, going out to eat spicy food, watching baseball on tv. Most of all, she was so happy to be so close to her daughter (Laura), her son-in-law (John), her sweet granddaughter (Natalie), her beloved grandson (Eric), Natalie's husband (Sean), Eric's girlfriend (Kaylynn), and the apple of her eye - her new great granddaughter (Isabelle).
Rhoda was a force. You remembered her after meeting her. She was lively and knowledgeable, clever and loving. We are all missing her terribly. She lived to be 91, and died as she hoped she would - peacefully, in her sleep.
Arrangements are being handled by Doan & Mills Funeral Home, 790 National Road West, Richmond.
Condolences may be sent to the family via the guest book at www.doanmillsfuneralhome.com