Linda (Swift) Dybeck

Linda graduated from Cuba Central School in 1958, and then attended St. Francis School of Practical Nursing, graduating in 1959. After working in the Pediatrics Department at St. Francis for several years, she attended Jamestown Community College, where she earned her associates degree in applied science (RN) in 1968. She then moved to Dunkirk, N.Y., where she accepted a job at Brooks Memorial Hospital as an registered nurse. During her nearly 30 years with the hospital, she touched the lives of generations of area residents as a member and then supervisor of labor and delivery, retiring in 2000 to care for her aging parents.

Linda was a kind and generous woman to all. An active member in the community, she instituted programs that have had a lasting impact over the years. In addition to her role at Brooks, she organized and taught expectant parenting classes, was responsible for thousands of deliveries of babies during her career and spearheaded Brooks Memorial Hospital’s Empty Arms program, which assisted parents grieving the loss of a newborn. She also worked with the Dunkirk Fire Department to create and manage the Tot Finder program. She taught hundreds of EMTs throughout Chautauqua County as well.

Linda was an excellent cook and an accomplished baker. Her Christmas cookies were a holiday highlight for family and friends. She also enjoyed reading and quilting in her free time.

She is survived by her son, David M. Swift; her loving brother, Terry A. (Mary Jane) Swift; and several nephews and a niece.

She was preceded in death by her parents; and her brother, Donald H. Swift.

Linda’s legacy of caring for others and teaching will continue, as her last wish was to donate her body to medical science.

There will be a celebration of life at a later time. Her ashes will be interred in the family plot in Cuba, New York, when she is done teaching.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the National Kidney Foundation (www.kidney.org).