Linda S. Gardner, 78, of South Hutchinson, died October 30, 2020, at Mennonite Friendship Communities, South Hutchinson.  She was born April 7, 1942, in Norwich, to Harold Ota and Edna (Allen) Pugh.

Linda was a 1960 graduate of Sylvia Rural High School.  She had a passion for working with dogs, from agility training to teaching obedience classes at the Hutchinson Kennel Club.  Linda worked at Wesley Towers, and Fairfield and Sylvia schools as a cook.

She enjoyed doing cross stitch and was an avid crocheting enthusiast, making afghans for seemingly everyone she knew.  Linda was an accomplished baker, with her homemade cinnamon rolls being one of the family's favorite.  She was a homemaker who enjoyed doing things with and for her family.  Linda treasured her family, and loved being a wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.

On September 10, 1961, she married Max Harold Gardner, in Sylvia.  They shared over 59 years of marriage.

Linda is survived by:  husband, Max Gardner of Hutchinson; son, John (Becky) Gardner of Pocahontas, AR; daughter, Gayle (Lee) Johnson of Hutchinson; grandchildren, Brooke Barker, Bailey Gardner, Austin Johnson, and Jenna Gardner; and three great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by:  her parents; and sisters, Dorothy Ann Pugh and Dixie Dodson.

Cremation has taken place.  Graveside service will be 10 a.m. Wednesday, November 4, 2020, at Memorial Park Cemetery, Hutchinson, with Steve Sears officiating.  Friends may sign the book from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at Elliott Mortuary.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Reno County Sheriff K-9 Unit, or KSDS Assistance Dogs, Inc., in care of Elliott Mortuary and Crematory, 1219 N. Main, Hutchinson, KS 67501.