Obituary of Linda S. Quinlivan

Linda Sue Knapik Quinlivan died at her home on Thursday, May 4th, 2017 surrounded by her family and friends. Linda died after a five year struggle from complications due to ALS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. She was 61 years old. Linda was born on December 15, 1955 in Binghamton,NY, to the late Joseph and Julia(Molenko) Knapik. She graduated from Main Endwell High School and then from Broome Community College as a Registered Nurse. She is survived by her husband, James J Quinlivan; a son, Collin J Quinlivan; sister, Elizabeth and husband Ken Metcalf, of Simi Valley, CA; three brothers; Joseph C. Knapik of Endwell, NY; David and wife, Anne Marie Knapik, both of Endwell, NY; and Stephen Knapik, of Endicott, NY; her mother and father-in-law, Mary and Robert Quinlivan, of Binghamton, NY; two sister-in-laws, Susan Lawson and husband, Martin; Margaret Hanifin and husband, Terrence, both of Binghamton, NY; and two brothers-in-law, Kevin Quinlivan of Binghamton, NY; Robert J Quinlivan and wife Christine of New Holland, PA; nieces, nephews, grand nieces, grand nephews and numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins. She was predeceased by her sister-in-law, Mary (Sullivan) Quinlivan. Linda's passion and devotion was to care for the needs of children and adolescents with psychiatric illnesses. She was a co-creator of the Binghamton Psychiatric Center for Adolescents program and was instrumental in the early stages of Fletcher Allen Hospital of Vermont's Psychiatric Adolescents program. She was a Head Nurse with both of these hospitals and with the St. Francis Hospital Psychiatric Adolescents program of Poughkeepsie, NY. Linda finally ended her nursing career as a School Nurse for the Spackenkill Union Free School District. Linda's passions were art, poetry, and cooking. Her tools for her drawings were made of crayons, pencils, and chalk. She would often send her drawings with a mylar balloon to her favorite neighborhood child with special needs, Gregory. Linda loved to go to flea markets and antique stores--collecting dolls, children's toys, canes, books and pottery. Linda's favorite place to be was in nature, especially at the ocean. After her ALS diagnosis, we made numerous trips up and down the East Coast breathing in the ocean air. Linda also enjoyed old movies, her favorite being 1939's 'The Wizard of Oz'. We must have watched this film over a hundred times! We would like to thank the following organizations and people for their loving, compassionate care through the last couple of years of Linda's life. Helen Mayer and Nancy Brenner of the ALS Association Greater New York Chapter, Dr. Roberta Miller and her staff of St. Peter's Lewis Golub MDA/ALS Regional Center, Albany, NY; the staff from Hospice of Hudson Valley; Linda's close friends, Christine, Linda, Jacquelyn, Judy, Mary, and our neighbors from Carriage Hill Lane. Finally, a special thank you to Linda's two caregivers, personal aide, Angjelina Jaku Vorfi, and our son, Collin. Angie was a gift from heaven! She brought joy, happiness, laughter, and compassion into our home. She never complained about the work load, or the hours spent taking care of Linda. With Angie being of Albanian descent, I often told her that her grandmother had to be Saint Mother Teresa. Next, our son, Collin. Son, thank you for your tireless efforts in taking care of your mother throughout the evening and early hours of morning. Your mother was so proud of your love, compassion and dedication to her needs. You gave up your career, your life, to make your mother's journey with ALS much more bearable. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Dutchess County SPCA, 900 Dutchess Turnpike, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 or The ALS Association, PO Box 37022, Boone, IA 50037-0022 Family and friends may call at the Timothy P. Doyle Funeral Home, 371 Hooker Ave, Poughkeepsie, NY, Wednesday, May 10, 2017, 4-8 PM. The memorial service will be held at Timothy P. Doyle Funeral Home on Thursday, May 11, 2017, at 11 am with pastor, Dr. Mike Gerhardt