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Linda Jane Roesti Mesquite, NV – Linda Jane Roesti, 72, passed away Tuesday, October 29, 2019 of natural causes. Linda was born December 23, 1946 in Minnesota, to Morris and Sally (Marjamaa) Hanninen. She married Chum Roesti at the Gold Hill Lutheran church in Butte, MT on December 26, 1965. They were married just shy of 54 years.
Linda was born in Minnesota and moved to Butte, MT as a young girl with her parents Morris and Sally Hanninen and her 4 brothers and sisters. She grew up in Butte where she attended and graduated from Butte High School. After meeting her future husband during an innocent softball dispute and eventually failing to properly discourage him she became engaged and married the incorrigible Chum Roesti. While attending college and working odd jobs cleaning hotel rooms and waitressing, she gave birth to 3 beautiful girls that were the light of her life. Linda attended Montana Tech and Western Montana College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Education. Following graduation, she went to work at Ramsey Elementary in Ramsey, MT and soon gave birth to her best and final child, this time a son, to everyone’s great cheer. She taught all ages of elementary school at Ramsey for 25 years, starting in 1973 and ending in 1998. After retiring, Linda moved with Chum to warmer climates, living both in St. George, Utah and Mesquite, Nevada.
As most of her students and family can attribute, Linda was known as a warm and caring teacher, mother and spouse. When discussing Linda with family members, many former students loved telling stories about their “favorite” teacher, Mrs. Roesti. Children always come first, her own, her students and others. She was known to say that there are no bad children only those that have not been given the opportunity, attention and love needed to succeed. As a young child, Linda discovered her love for reading and learning about new places, things and ideas. Only allowed to take a small amount of books from the library at a time, she choose volume, taking and reading encyclopedias which helped lead to her knowing a great variety of general knowledge. Before the internet and Google, you went to Linda to answer your questions.
As a youngster growing up in rough and tumble Butte, MT, Linda was much of a rascal, leading her friends on escapades through old Butte including using the old log runs at Columbia gardens for waterslides, exploring abandoned mine shafts, riding a tractor tire through a plate glass bar window, storing garden snakes in her mother’s picnic basket, leading rooftop water fights and once cutting power to uptown Butte through strategic use of a child’s gymnastic baton.
As an adult, Linda was a highly intelligent bookworm; known to have three or more paperbacks in her purse at all times and treated her home as a library storing her thousands of novels collected throughout the years. Linda’s children were a highlight of her life, she enjoyed attending her children’s athletic events including speed skating, softball games, basketball, football and baseball. She never missed a game, no matter how far she had to travel attending games from coast to coast and in Canada. From the kids grade school activities to their college sports, she was there supporting and sometimes pulling the errant bat throwing child off the field by the ear. Her other great loves included camping at such locations as Flathead lake and Elkhorn where much of her summers were spent with her family. She loved to cook and entertain with her family and friends. Her favorite times were holidays with her husband, children, immediate family, her beloved nieces and nephews and as she aged, her grandchildren. Linda’s kind and gentle nature made her a favorite aunt, mother and wife.
Linda is survived by her husband, Chum Roesti of Mesquite, NV; children- Jordi and Bill Anzik of Helena, MT; Jenni Sullivan of Helena, MT; JoEllen Roesti of Antioch, CA; Chad and Dania Roesti of Houston TX. Grandchildren- Camden Roesti of Helena, MT; Dublin and Taggart Sullivan of Butte, MT; Seamus Sullivan of Helen, MT; Finnley Roesti of Antioch, CA; Logan Kin Roesti of Houston, TX. Brothers and Sisters: Bill and Carol Ray of Winnemucca, NV, Dallas and Karen Cox of Helena MT, Carol Hanninen of Missoula MT and Larry and Tammy Hanninen of Elk Park, MT and many beloved nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her brother Gary Hanninen, parents Morris and Sally Hanninen and Paul and Coline Roesti.
Celebration of life services will be held during the summer in Butte, Montana with family and friends, followed by the spreading of ashes in her favorite places in the beautiful Rocky Mountains & Flathead Lake. It will be announced through newspaper and social media.
A Facebook page will be set up for posting of photos, stories, etc. for family and friends to post. Also, a Guest Book page has been set up for friends and family to view and leave messages or memories at virginvalleymortuary.com.
