Linda Pitney passed away after a four-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease on October 19, 2023 at Orangeburg Memory Care in Modesto, CA. Linda passed away peacefully in her sleep with her family by her side.
Linda was born on May 27, 1943 in Mentor, Ohio, to Lester and Betty Lorincz of Painesville, Ohio. Lester was a proud veteran of World War II. He served in the North African and European theaters as an infantryman in the U.S. Army. Linda was extremely close to and proud of her father. Linda was the older sister to Thomas Edward Lorincz.
Growing up in Painesville, Linda had many wonderful friends. She cherished Sunday dinners with all of her cousins at her beloved Granny’s house. Linda graduated from Riverside High School in 1961 and went on to get a degree in Dental Hygiene from Ohio State University.
In the early 1960s, Linda moved west to San Francisco, CA, where she worked as a dental hygienist at the Presidio. In 1967, while visiting her family for the holidays, her mother introduced her to Richard Pitney. Within five minutes, the story goes, Linda said she knew that Richard was the man she would marry. And marry they did in April 1968. Soon thereafter they relocated to Tyler, TX where they welcomed son Evan in 1969. Richard’s work took them to Perth, Australia and then to Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where Linda fell in love with the Brazilian people, culture, food, and language.
In 1978, Linda, Richard and Evan returned to the U.S. and settled in Alameda, CA. They welcomed daughter Amanda in 1979. Linda eventually returned to work as a dental hygienist and worked for many years at 450 Sutter Street in San Francisco. She truly enjoyed her time working with Dr. Brad Giles, Dr. Charles Mohn, and Dr. Gary Low. Her patients praised her as an attentive and compassionate dental hygienist.
In 2000, Linda and Richard leapt at the opportunity to return to Belo Horizonte, Brazil and lived there for another five wonderful years. In 2005, they were pulled back to the U.S. to enjoy life as grandparents. First, to Evan and his wife Lillian’s son, Cooper, and then to Amanda and her husband Michael Picetti’s son, Nathan. Linda’s greatest joy was being a grandmother, “Gaggy”, to these two boys.
Linda loved art, history, interior design, and collecting antiques. She was an accomplished church organist and linguist, speaking Latin, French, German, Hungarian, and Portuguese. She was also an amazing cook, as anyone who attended her famous Christmas parties can attest.
Linda is survived by her loving husband of 55 years, Richard Pitney (Oakdale, CA), son and daughter-in-law, Evan and Lillian Pitney (Oakdale, CA), daughter and son-in-law, Amanda and Michael Picetti (Alameda, CA), grandsons Cooper Pitney and Nathan Picetti, and brother, Lt. Col. T. E. Lorincz (Cambridgeshire, England).
A memorial mass will be held on Monday, November 20, 2023, at 11 a.m. at St. Philip Neri Church, 3100 Van Buren Street, Alameda, CA 94501, with a luncheon to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family would greatly appreciate your consideration of making a donation to Bristol Hospice Modesto, 1101 Sylvan Avenue, Suite B-10, Modesto, CA 95350.
The Oakdale (Calif.) Leader
The Riverbank (Calif.) News
Nov. 15, 2023
