December 26, 1955 - May 23, 2023
Linda Sue Steffe, 67, of Topeka Kansas, passed away on May 23, 2023 at Midland Hospice Care Home in Topeka. Linda lost a hard fought 6 year battle with metastatic colon cancer.
She was born on December 26, 1955 to David Neale Steffe and Joyce Karen Steffe (Larsen) in Sioux City , IA. Linda was the oldest sister to Kathleen and Steven.
She graduated in 1974 from Arnolds Park High School in Arnolds Park, IA. Linda attended Buena Vista College in Storm Lake IA for two years before marrying Fred Schmidt Jr.. in Milford, IA. They were married for 9 years before subsequently divorcing. After their divorce Linda moved to Sioux City IA and began to work for Great Western Casualty Insurance Co. she was transferred to their Boise, Idaho office and lived there for several years. While living in Boise, she finished her college degree obtaining two Bachelor of Science degrees. She then moved to Topeka KS to be closer to family. Linda obtained a teaching degree at Emporia State College and began her lifelong teaching career. She was substitute teaching in the Topeka 501 school district just a few weeks before her death.
Teaching took Linda to several states including Alaska and South Dakota. She taught at Savoonga, AK on the St. Lawrence Island in the North Pacific Ocean, at Arctic Village in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and at Fort Yukon to name a few. She would fly in on a bush plane to these remote villages with a couple of suitcases and a few boxes of provisions. When she needed to stock back up, she would fly to Nome or Fairbanks. Once during a trip to Nome, she watched the famous Alaskan Iditarod Race finish. She also taught on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota and spent a few summers working in Yellowstone National Park when school was closed.
