On the morning of October 27th, our
dear friend and colleague, Linda Long went home to be with her Savior.
Linda served as nurse manager of
the Pregnancy Care Centers of South Central Indiana for ten years. In 2003,
then executive director Jim Bramlett and the board of directors saw the need to
offer ultrasound scans to women who had positive pregnancy tests. Linda, who
had been volunteering as a peer counselor at the time, accepted the
responsibility to lead this new ministry initiative. Jim said, “Linda was one
of the most compassionate, caring and loving people that I have ever met! She
was also dedicated to excellence with integrity in her role as ultrasound
technician and Nurse Manager.”
Linda loved working with her
clients and certainly did serve with excellence. She was passionate about using
her technical skills to provide a window into the womb so moms and dads could
see the heartbeat of their child being knit together by the hand of God. She
loved calming the fears of new parents and providing them with encouragement
and resources to help them make wise choices about their own lives and that of their child. Through her faithful
service in this ministry, untold numbers of babies were born that might
otherwise have been aborted.
More than that, Linda had a heart
for God which was the primary motivating factor in her life and ministry. It
led her to be the person she was in her family, church, work and community. Her
faith was integrated into every aspect of her life. Linda was a missionary,
sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with those she came in contact with. She
was never shy to point clients to Scripture and share the truth of God’s word
with them. She held them accountable yet loved them with the compassion of
Christ. She prayed with them in the counseling room and for them long after
they left the Center.
Tim Bond, Executive Director, best summed up the impact Linda made on all
of our lives with the eulogy he gave at her funeral. “In my life, Linda Long
will be counted among my heroes of the faith; those who are willing to hear
God’s call and give their life, one day at a time, to the service of their Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. She did that in order to please Him and to bring Him
glory, honor and praise. She did that in anticipation of one day hearing Him
say, ‘Well done good and faithful servant.’”
