Mary Linda Rogers

There are people who take the heart out of you, and then there are people that put it back.” Mary Linda Rogers entered eternal life on Sunday, March 13th surrounded by her family. She was born on March 3rd, 1943 in Douglas, AZ to Charles and Mary Ruby Strunk. She was no stranger to grief from an early age, yet she always managed to find joy in the little things. An aspiring actress and singer, her big dream was to perform on Broadway. However, her life’s journey led her to work as a kindergarten teacher, music teacher, and advocate for children as the Director of Justice for Children. She instilled a love of music in others and found joy in being an active part of her church and community. With a heart the size of Montana, she was devoted to her husband, Joe Rogers, of 40 years. Her memory is carried on by her eight children, 23 grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren, one surviving sister, and an extended ‘family’ of friends from every walk of life. Linda and Joe owned and operated Heartwood Guest Ranch in Coram Montana.
They wed on June 26th, 1982. Their home was full of adventure, a menagerie of animals, visitors from all walks of life, campfires, and stories. A razor sharp wit, talent for storytelling and great sense of humor, she was able to provide life lessons through narrative. She was often known to not mince words, in hopes of helping you see a new perspective. Every member of her family has sat around “the butcher block” listening to her tell many wild, sad and joyful stories of her journey through life. One particular story that comes to mind is the time she snuck a baby goat into a fairly upscale hotel, under her jacket, up the elevator, and eventually into her room! Her rule was to, ‘always follow the rules until you need to break them!’ A woman of deep faith, she advocated for people and animals, and had a unique gift for seeing the passion, talents, and contributions of others. This was evident in the encouragement and ‘knowing’ wisdom she provided to her children and grand-children to pursue their passions. Always a teacher, she pushed her family to develop their individual talents–even if it meant dragging some of them to piano, guitar, or voice lessons. Even though she lived ‘a full life’ as she described it, for her family, it felt as though her journey ended far too soon. She believed that “when life has other plans, sometimes you just have to go with it and go with God.” She loved her entire family. She worried about them, rooted for them, protected them, forgave them, and always kept on loving them. A service to honor her memory will be held at Canyon Community Church on Saturday, June 18th, 2022 at 2:00pm. In lieu of flowers, the family would ask that you would donate to Hope Pregnancy Ministries (Kalispell, Montana) or Canyon Community Church.