Linda Payne

On October 3, 1949 Joe and Ruth Gritts were blessed by the birth of their second of seven children, Linda Sue Gritts, in Tahlequah Ok.

Linda was an intelligent child, very inquisitive, and she loved to learn. This and her desire to help people led her to attend nursing school and graduate with her LPN license. She never lost her love of learning, and she continued to do so for the rest of her life.

Linda was an avid sports fan, she loved OU and the OKC Thunder, and she never missed a game. She was also a huge fan of the PBR and the WWE. Her grandkids knew that they could always watch wrestling at grandmas and by the time they were 2, they knew all the wrestler’s names. Linda had an analytical mind so she loved watching criminal investigation shows, and medical mystery’s. She always figured out whatever the mystery was well before the end of the show. And to the amazement of her daughters, she always did her crossword puzzles in ink.

Linda enjoyed traveling, and she went out on adventures as often as she could. She became a nurse because she had a true desire to help people, and that’s exactly what she did. She was always calm under pressure, which in turn brought calm to those around her. When asked how she could work in the ER when things got so hectic and people were in extreme situations, she said you have to compartmentalize because it’s not about you, it’s about them, and they need you to be strong for them. Many times she used her medical knowledge to help save someone’s life, including outside of the hospital.

Linda’s family was the most important thing to her.

All her nieces and nephews called her Aunt Lindy and they always knew that her house was a place for them to come if they needed advice or wanted to vent..or if they just wanted a piece of candy from her bowl that was always full.

Linda was called home on August 16, 2020. She lived in Shady Grove Oklahoma. She was 70.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Joe and Ruth Gritts, her infant sons, her brother-in-law Bobby Mayfield, and her brother, William (Bill) Gritts.

She is survived by her daughters, Shelly Robinson and Traci Myres, (Jay) her granddaughters Kaitlin Myres and Jalynn Myres, and the love of her life, her great grandson Dakota Myres. She is also survived by her five sisters and brothers, Dianna Mayfield, Jack Gritts (Tammy) Jerry Gritts (Shirley), Brenda Gritts, and Donna Graham (Mark) and numerous nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews, cousins other relatives and friends.

To send flowers or plant a tree in her memory visit www.hartfuneralhome.net. Linda was also a great supporter of the Wounded Warrior Project or if you would like, you can honor her memory by donating to a cause that was close to her heart.