Linda Dalton

Linda Ruth (Higgins) Dalton of Lubbock passed away on Saturday, May 10, 2025, at the age of 81. She was born in 1943 in Pueblo, Colorado to the late Oris and Ruth Higgins. Linda grew up in Colorado and graduated from Walsh High School in the class of 1961. There were nineteen members of her class, and they remained a close-knit group throughout the years, getting together yearly and even traveling together. She later lived for a short time in Texas and Wyoming, and lived for nearly 40 years in Grants, New Mexico where she raised her two sons, Anthony and Chris. Linda absolutely loved New Mexico! She received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Panhandle A & M College in Goodwell, Oklahoma in 1963 at the age of 20. She immediately started teaching. Linda came from a rich heritage of teaching, with her mother and several aunts and cousins, all being teachers. She and her sister Carole both followed in their footsteps. Interestingly, her mother, Ruth Higgins, was completing her degree at the same college as Linda during the summers and there were times when mother and daughter had classes together at Panhandle A & M! Linda often said that she always knew that she wanted to be a teacher. She fulfilled her dream by working in the school system for thirty years total, first as an elementary school teacher and later as a school counselor before retiring in 2009. She got her master’s degree in counseling from Western New Mexico University. She was a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, a teacher’s professional organization.

After retiring, Linda moved to Rio Rancho, NM where she quickly got involved with the Newcomer’s group. She loved to keep busy with outings and activities, traveled with her sister and Sun Tours, and found and enjoyed many dear friends. In 2022, Linda made Lubbock home so she could be close to her family. At her home in Raider Ranch, she could often be found entertaining her grandkids, having lunch out with friends, or enjoying a friendly card game. She was a faithful member of Monterey Church of Christ and especially enjoyed the fellowship and friends at Active Retirees. She will be best remembered as having a great sense of humor, and as being a faithful mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and loyal friend.

Those left to cherish her memory are her two sons, Anthony Dalton and wife Je’May of Lubbock and Chris Dalton of Prescott, Arizona; grandchildren, Cole, Piper, and Jace Dalton; and sister, Carole Mabry and husband John of Allen, Texas. Her nieces, Leslie Lewis and Jill Moudy, and nephew Michael Mabry, along with cousins and numerous dear friends will always remember her fondly.

The family will have a time of fellowship beginning at 5:00 pm Thursday, May 29, 2025, with memorial services starting at 6:00 pm at Venue on Broadway, 2202 Broadway.