Linda Louise Rhode, age 76, of Farmington, MN, was greeted by her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Tuesday, December 28, 2021, at M Health Fairview, in Burnsville, MN. She was surrounded by her sons at the time of her passing.
A celebration of life will be on Wednesday, January 5, at 11 am, with a time of gathering from 9:30-10:45 am, at The Real Tree Church, 25975 Galaxie Avenue, Farmington, MN. Pastor Shon McIntyre will preside. Linda’s urn bearer will be Thomas Hennen, with honorary bearers Rick Kes, Mike Klingberg, Steve Klingberg, Lisa Bowyer, and Kim Stahura.
Livestreaming will be available at:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2kZuLlifVKYsFn7VNiXzGw/featured
Linda’s faith in Jesus Christ was the cornerstone of her life. Linda was born into a strong Christian family on March 19, 1945, in Shakopee, MN. She was fourth of six children to William “Bill” and Ida (Mueller) Klingberg. Linda grew up on the family farm in Prior Lake, MN, with her siblings, William Jr, Marilyn, Eugene, Gale and Cynthia. Linda attended Prior Lake schools, where she graduated with the Class of 1963.
Linda married Keith Rhode in 1965 and the couple was together for 25 years. They were blessed with two amazing sons, Jonathan born in 1970 and Erik in 1974. She was very active in the boys’ lives and loved spending time with them. Life was enriched for Linda even further when she became a proud grandma. Her first grandchild, Leah arrived in 1993, and Linda was her biggest fan. Jenna graced the family in 2001, her brother Alex followed in 2003, and Josiah became part of the family in 2008 with Erik’s marriage to Mia. In 2020, God saw fit to start blessing her with great grandchildren. Linda was extremely proud to be great grandma to Oliver, Ramsey, and new twin girls Wyatt and Sawyer.
Linda worked various jobs throughout her lifetime, including as a retail clerk, receptionist and bus driver. For the last two years, she worked at Kwik Trip in Farmington. Linda enjoyed this job, the people she worked with, and the company very much. She also enjoyed working with kids, volunteering for years at Roosevelt Elementary School in Faribault where she was known as “Grandma Linda”. She also loved spending time with her good friends at the Friendship House in Faribault.
Linda loved being involved in the life of the church. Her faith was strengthened by regularly attending Bible study, along with retreats and other church activities. Linda enjoyed traveling in the US, visiting Jon and family in Texas, and seeing the wonderful sights and sounds of Hawaii. She was honored when a dear friend brought her to Vietnam to be a part of her son’s adoption story. Linda cherished the times spent with her brothers and sisters, especially with sister Marilyn camping at Sturgeon Lake.
Linda lived a simple life. She loved people and once she met you, you were one of her friends. She had such a big heart and enjoyed caring for people, always putting others before herself. Linda was a patriot, and dearly loved her country.
Forever loved, Linda will be greatly missed by sons, Jonathan (Amy) Rhode and Erik (Mia) Rhode; grandchildren, Leah (Jacob) Rischmiller, Jenna Rhode, Alex Rhode, and Josiah (Alynie) Walter; great-grandchildren, Oliver Walter, Ramsey Rischmiller, Wyatt Rischmiller, and Sawyer Rischmiller; siblings, Gene (Nancy) Klingberg, Cynthia (Mike) Hennen; sister-in-law, Mary Klingberg; brother-in-law, Richard Kes; and many other relatives and friends.
Welcoming Linda home to Heaven are her parents; siblings, Gale “Buck” Klingberg, William Jr (Nancy) Klingberg, Marilyn Kes; and sister-in-law, Barb Klingberg.
