Linda Lee (Wendt) Vopat, 71 of Spearfish, left this earth on December 28, 2018 at Rapid City Regional Hospital.

She was born in Belle Fourche, South Dakota on May 31, 1947 to William and Nina Wendt. She attended Belle Fourche High School with the Class of 1965. Linda lived in Rapid City SD, Torrington WY, Nixa MO, and Arvada CO before returning to Belle Fourche. She was driving school bus and took an Emergency Medical Technician class to be better prepared to face a medical emergency on a school bus. In this class, Linda met her husband, Edward Vopat. They were married on July 1, 1979 and began teaching EMT and CPR classes in the Black Hills. Linda volunteered as an EMT with the Spearfish Emergency Ambulance Service. She took classes to become an LPN and worked in several settings before they moved to Wichita KS, where she worked at the VA hospital. After a stop in Kansas City, they moved to Colorado and Linda worked in nursing. During their time in Colorado she was trained to be a Nail Technician and a Pharmacy Technician. After living in Colorado for 25 years, Ed and Linda returned to the Black Hills to live in Spearfish.

Linda had a thirst for knowledge and when she became interested in a subject she would try to learn as much as possible about it. She found her true passion in quilting. She liked all aspects of quilting and even quilted professionally. Linda tried to help others in any way she could. Family was one of the most important things in her life and she was very close to her children and five grandsons.

Linda is survived by her husband, Edward of Spearfish SD; daughters, Fern (Tom) Tillman of Wittmann AZ, Korene Oates of Frisco, CO; son, Anthony (Chanda) Vopat of Spearfish; grandsons, Jason, Jordan, and Jared Oates of Aurora CO and Ethan and Hudson Vopat of Spearfish; sister, Shirley (JJ) Jones of Corvallis OR and brother, Bobby (Phyllis) Wendt of Atwood TN. She was preceded in death by her parents.

Memorial services will be 1:00 pm Saturday, January 5, 2019 at the Fidler-Isburg Funeral Chapel. Inurnment will follow at the Whitewood Cemetery. A Celebration of Life will be held from 1:00-4:00 PM on Monday, July 1, 2019 at the home of Edward Vopat at 281 Evans Lane in Spearfish.

A memorial has been established to the Shriner's Children's Hospitals.

Online condolences may be written at www.fidler-isburgfuneralchapels.com