Gerald Frank Linder

Gerald Frank Linder, 91, went to be with our Lord and Savior on November 3, 2022, after a long battle with cancer. He was born on August 31, 1931, to Raymond and Ethel Linder in Daniels County, MT, on the Linder family farm. He attended a country school south of Flaxville. He was 19 when he met his best girl, Coralie Mehl from Plentywood, when she was 15!

In the spring of 1954, he joined the U.S. Army and was stationed at Fort Ord in California. He married Coralie at the Fort Ord Chapel on October 16, 1954. While in the army, he earned his GED. He also served a few months in Germany.  Back home, their first daughter Vickie was born in Plentywood. After his deployment, he and his family lived in Los Angeles, CA, where he attended LA trade Tech. Their second daughter, Cherie, was born during this time.

In 1959, the family moved to Billings, MT, where they welcomed their third daughter, Pamela, and fourth daughter, Chris-Ann. At that time, he worked as a body man for Midland Dodge. His various other jobs included construction work, recreational trailer repairs, and his last job was a service manager for Western Sales and Service. He retired in 1998.

Gerald enjoyed camping with his family, teaching his girls how to fish, hunting, and playing cribbage. In retirement, he loved living on their property in the Bull Mountains, taking care of his many pets and feeding all the wild birds and squirrels. He also enjoyed woodworking, especially making birdhouses and feeders. He was an avid reader of western novels!

Gerald is survived by his wife of 68 years, Coralie Linder of Billings; daughters Vickie Linder of Billings, Cherie (Mark) Bauer of Navasota, TX, Pamela (Loren) Rose of East Helena, MT; and son-in-law Bob Breeding of Billings. He has nine grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his daughter, Chris-Ann; father Raymond; mother Ethel; and his brother, DeWayne.

Gerald will always be remembered for his wonderful smile and sense of humor. He was always ready to help anyone in need and never met a stranger. He always had a positive attitude about everything even while going through treatments for his cancer. His girls will fondly remember greeting him at the door after work with hugs and whisker rubs. They would fight over who got to take his work boots off and get his beer. He loved his four girls!

A celebration of life and interment will be held at a later date in Plentywood, MT.

Gerald’s family would like to extend a thank you to his neighbors, the V.A. staff, the RiverStone nurses, North West Oxygen, and the staff at the Billings Clinic for their caring support and help.

“I’d climb the highest mountain for you, Coralie!”