York, ME - Linda Lee Littlefield (Wardwell), 73, of York, Maine, passed away on October 17, 2019 after a long and courageous battle with one of the most aggressive forms of brain cancer. She lived a high quality of life until the end, years past when the medical world said she could, because their schedule simply did not work for her. And that is how Linda lived her whole life...on her terms.

Linda was born to Hilda and Ernest Wardwell, June 15, 1946 in Bangor, Maine making her, in her own words, a "real" Mainer. The birth of her two children began with an hour drive to Portland to assure they could be classified as real Mainers, as opposed to the ten minute drive to Portsmouth, NH which was the other option at the time. Her parent's free summers as a principal and school teacher gave them the opportunity to travel with Linda and her brothers Bruce and John. They spent this time camping and exploring the woods and coast of Maine. She shared her love of these places with her own family with a yearly trip to Baxter State Park and a mandatory hike up Mt. Katahdin. Linda always got more excited with each mile driven north on the Maine Turnpike, gradually replacing her r's with h's.

Linda graduated from Bangor High School in 1964 and The Maine Medical School of Nursing in 1967. She worked as a registered nurse at Maine Medical Center and then Portsmouth Regional Hospital. Being a RN was the thing she was the most passionate about and although she stopped her career to raise her children she never stopped being a nurse.

She met her husband Tom in college while he was attending Maine Maritime Academy and they married (eloped against the school's and her mother's rules) in 1967. They were married again in a church in 1968 to correct the error with her mother. Linda and Tom remained married and hopelessly in love until the very end, which was for over fifty-two years. Thirty of those years were as a sailor's wife with her husband in the merchant marine and spending long periods away from home. This was a difficult way to raise children and be married but was something she excelled at doing.

She raised two children, her daughter Leslie and son Jason with old fashion strictness and the unconditional love of a mother. She truly came to life when it came to her grandchildren, Ivan, Sydney and Lucy. Much to the chagrin of her two children she retired the discipline and only provided the unconditional and rule-less love of a grandmother.

Linda had an uncanny ability to know whether you needed gentle love and support or unfiltered truth, depending on which was best for you at the moment. She was the lighthouse who kept you off the rocks or the harbor that protected you from the storm. Her belief in you made you believe in yourself and she was extremely intelligent and strong women who vehemently protected those who she loved. She was a friend for life and a mother to not only her children and grandchildren but to anyone who needed her.

One of the things we will all miss the most will be Linda's unforgettable laughter. There will be a deafening silence in the lives of all of all of us who knew and loved her but she left us with a lifetime of memories and love.

Visiting hours will be held at J.S. Pelkey and Son Funeral Home in Kittery, Maine. Visiting hours will be held from 5-7 pm Wednesday October 23 ^rd .