Linda N. Haskell

Linda N. Haskell, a force of nature, said goodbye to this world after a valiant battle with metastatic breast cancer.  Linda is survived by her husband and soul mate, Brian, with whom she shared an all too brief but passionate and romantic love affair.  Linda was mother to three amazing children, Joshua, Sofia, and Victor Murgo.  These children were the joy of her existence and the source of unbounded pride.  But Linda’s heart was so big that she also cherished and nurtured her three step-children, Nicholas, Jacob, and Natalie Haskell.  Linda was the unquestioned center of this blended, beautiful family.  Her joy, love, and enthusiasm still echo through her home and will linger undiminished for so long as her family remains.

Linda is also survived by her loving mother, Ines Castagna, and her doting father, Vittorio Castagna.  Linda learned to be a grownup from them, and as she grew, she became a source of constant aid, comfort, humor, and a deep and abiding love.  Linda’s brother, Claudio, his wife Donna and their daughter Julia also remain to share in our grief and to honor the amazing legacy Linda left for all of us.

A veteran respiratory therapist, Linda brought life and breath to thousands of patients at Kent Hospital and elsewhere.  Her kindness and gentle touch time and again cheated death, and when the fight was over, Linda’s love and compassion helped ease the profound grief of others.  Indeed, Linda’s devotion to others before self defined her and infected those around her with a sense of well being and joy.  Linda taught all who would learn that our lives are enriched when we create joy and happiness for others.

Even in her final days and moments, Linda strove to ease our pain.  She left this life only after she had convinced herself that all about whom she cared deeply were cared for and loved.  Her heart had simply grown too big for this world.  She has now gone to join her first husband and love, Chris Naylor, who died so many years ago, but whose goodness, kindness, and love lived on through Linda and, with grace and hope, will continue to live on through all of us.  Everyone who knew Linda will miss her bright smile, quick wit, and mostly, her shining love.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Saturday, February 16th, 2019 at 10:00am at Our Lady of Mercy Church, 65 Third St., East Greenwich, Rhode Island.  Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery at 959 Nooseneck Hill Rd., West Greenwich, Rhode Island.  Calling hours: Friday, February 15th, 2019 5-8pm at Hill Funeral Home, 822 Main St., East Greenwich.  In lieu of flowers, donations in Linda’s memory may be made to The Cam Neely Foundation for Cancer Care, 30 Winter Pl # 2, Boston, MA 02108 (617) 346-5900 (https://camneelyfoundation.org/ways-to-give-2).

A gathering in celebration of Linda’s life will be held following the burial at The Exeter Volunteer Fire Department, 305 Ten Rod Road, Exeter, Rhode Island.  All are welcome.