Linda Carothers was born in 1944 in rural Houston County, Tennessee.  Linda died in Crossville, Tennessee on July 31, 2023, surrounded by loved ones.  She grew up on a farm with her parents Arthur and Sarah Tanner and her five sisters: Donna, Nina Dean, Doris, Martha, and Lois.  She graduated from Houston County High School in 1962, excelling in shorthand and typing.  After moving to Nashville, she became a legal secretary, then upon completing training on the stenograph shorthand machine, fulfilled a dream of becoming an official court stenographer for the 15th Judicial District of Tennessee.  In the meantime, she met and married Paul Carothers.  They were blessed with two children, Dennis and Paula.

She retired in 2005 and moved to Lake Tansi in Cumberland County, Tennessee.  There, she threw herself into her new community, making a multitude of friends and doing good.  She was active in the Exchange Club where for years she cooked the smoked, pulled-pork barbeque for the annual golf tournament, a major fundraising event.  She was the co-initiator of the Margarita Open, an annual fun golf event for ladies.  She was chair of the Lake Tansi Recreation Committee.  She was a listening post and a dependable friend for anyone who needed one.  And there were many.

Linda was preceded in death by her parents and sisters Donna Shelden and Martha Pulley.  She is survived by her husband Paul, son Dennis (Traci) and daughter Paula Langford (Scott), five grandchildren Eryn Younger (Aubrey), Taylor Langford, Bobbye Carothers, Colton Langford, and Jennie Langford; along with three great grandchildren (Shelbye Jones, Nolan Younger and Julie Younger); sisters Nina Dean Galland, Doris Thompson, and Lois Tanner; and a multitude of cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.

A Celebration of Life will be held at the Lake Tansi Village Thunderbird Center on September 15, 2023, at 6:00 PM.