HALLOWELL – It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Linda Rogers McKee on March 5, 2025, at the age of 83, after a long illness. She died peacefully and leaves a profound legacy shaped by her commitment to education, environmental stewardship, and public service.

Born on Sept. 1, 1941, in Easley, South Carolina to Riley Mae (Porter) and Robert Rogers, Linda Lois Rogers was the fourth of six children. Linda was educated in the Easley public schools, attended Furman University and graduated from Winthrop University with a BA in English. While living and teaching at a local high school in Hampton, Virginia, Linda met Robert McKee, a U.S. Air Force officer who was stationed there. Bob recalls instantly knowing that he had found someone truly extraordinary. Linda and Bob were married in 1965.

Following Bob’s military service, Linda and Bob packed up the kids and ultimately settled in Wayne, Maine in 1972, on a 102 acre homestead they named “Plumgood Farm,” a nod to Linda’s Southern vernacular where “plum good” means something exceptionally good and fruitful. And so it was.

Linda and Bob started a family farm from the ground up at Plumgood, including a massive vegetable garden, cows, chickens, and a variety of other animals through the years. Linda was passionate about organic gardening and was one of the first members of Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA). Her days were guided by sustainable practices, not as a passing trend but as a deeply held commitment – she recycled diligently, repurposed creatively, and composted faithfully. There was nary a day when the instruction to her children was anything other than “all kids play outside,” to help foster a love for the outdoors and, ultimately, a commitment to protect it.

Linda served on her local and regional school boards, and, in North Wayne, she restored the historic schoolhouse there and ran “living history days.” In 1980, she returned to teaching, first at Gardiner and ultimately at Winthrop High School. She was a gifted high school English teacher, with an endless curiosity about the world, and was always in pursuit of new ideas, perspectives, and stories. Her passion for storytelling, poetry, biography writing, and advocacy for and with the Mi’kmaq Nation (formerly the Aroostook Band of Micmacs), was infectious and made her a beloved teacher and mentor.

In 1997, Linda ran for the Maine Legislature and won, ultimately serving four terms representing Wayne, Winthrop and Fayette. She served as Co-Chair of the Agriculture Committee where she was especially proud to be a prime sponsor of a “first in the country, first in the world,” cross contamination bill, which aimed to hold corporations accountable for cross contamination of non-genetically engineered crops. And, among other legislative accomplishments that reflected her deeply held values, Linda introduced legislation that created a new Citizens’ Center at the Maine State House, a resource for empowering citizens with tools to lobby effectively and stand on a level playing field with paid industry lobbyists.

As a pianist and organist, Linda filled her home, church and community centers with music. Her children fondly remember hearing her play the piano in the evenings as she practiced for an upcoming church service, to ready herself for the piano lessons she taught, or just playing for her love of music, a love that she passed down to her grandchildren. In addition to teaching them piano and encouraging them to sing, she taught them to grow their own gardens and to bake bread, skills she felt must be passed down to the next generation. They fondly remember hikes up Surry Hill with Nana, who would put her Master Naturalist skills to work and point out different tree and plant species along the way.

Linda’s legacy lives on in the countless lives she touched through her advocacy, her work, and her unwavering belief in the power of nature and narrative to heal and sustain. She was a woman of integrity, boundless energy, and determination, whose commitment to family, community, and the world around her was without limit.

Linda is survived by her beloved husband of 60 years, Robert S. McKee, and their children, Elizabeth Coffey (Brad), Walter (Kristin Aiello), Christopher (Kimberly), and Thomas (Amanda) McKee, and grandchildren, Madeleine (Hossame Boudaghia), Gabriel and Tobias Coffey; Anne (Tyler DeAngelis), Katherine, Robert, Samuel, Alistair, Caroline and Charles McKee. She also leaves behind her siblings, Wallace (Faye) Rogers, Betty Taylor (Russ), and Wayne (Clara) Rogers, sisters-in-law, Pat Swindler, Frankie Rogers, Vickie Rogers and many adored nieces and nephews. In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her brothers, Jimmy and Boyce Rogers and brother-in-law, Glenn Swindler.

Linda’s family is deeply grateful to Karen Blodgett and the staff at Woodlands Senior Living of Hallowell for the skilled and compassionate care they provided to Linda over the course of her illness.

A celebration of life service will be held on March 16, 2025, at 2 p.m., at the Wayne Community Church, followed by a reception at the Ladd Center, 26 Gott Road, Wayne.

Arrangements and guidance are in the care of Roberts Funeral Home and Cremation Care, 62 Bowdoin Street, Winthrop, Maine.

Condolences, memories, and photos may be shared with the family on the obituary page of the Roberts Funeral Home website, http://www.khrfuneralhomes.com

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Cary Memorial Library in Wayne or the Wayne Community Church in Linda’s honor.