The Reverend Linda Axelson Packard of Galena, IL, died on November 10, 2023.  A memorial service will be held at 11:00 am on Saturday, December 2, 2023, at Grace Episcopal Church, 107 S. Prospect Street, Galena, IL.  The Rev. Dr. Paula Harris and The Right Rev. Bonnie Perry will officiate.  For those unable to attend in person, this live stream link will be made available for your viewing; https://youtube.com/live/QrvJzkru8dA?feature=share

 
Linda was born on March 7, 1942, in Chicago, IL to William A. and Elin K. (Andersson) Axelson, undocumented Swedish immigrants.  Linda attended Lawrence College and earned her Masters in Divinity from Seabury-Western Seminary.  She served as the rector at Church of our Saviour, Chicago, IL, for more than 10 years, and as interim rector at Grace Episcopal Church, Galena, IL, Grace Episcopal Church, Oak Park, IL, supply priest at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Dubuque, IA, and St. Andrew’s Pentecost Episcopal Church, Evanston, IL.  She also volunteered on mission trips to Liberia, Myanmar, Haiti, and Southeast Mexico.  She served as a mentor to many clergy women in the Episcopal Church.

Linda and Tony Packard initially met in their freshman biology class at Evanston Township High School.  They reconnected at the 20th reunion of their high school class in 1980 and married three months later at St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church, Linden Hills, Minneapolis.  After raising their family in Evanston, IL, and upon retirement, they moved to the Galena Territory.  There Linda enjoyed spending time tending her gardens, training and showing her Bernese Mountain dogs, and baking Swedish cookies and breads.  She was a loyal member of the Bernese Mountain Dog Club of Southeast Wisconsin, the Society of Saint John the Evangelist in Cambridge, MA, and the Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation.  

She is survived by her husband of 43 years, Charles Anthony “Tony” Packard, her three children, Ingrid (Dean) Kash, Kate Packard, and Tom Packard, and three grandchildren, Justin, Matthew, and Emerson, along with several nieces and nephews and many cousins in Sweden.  She was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, William G. Axelson.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Linda’s name to the Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation, the Myelodysplastic Syndromes Foundation, or the Lawrence University Fund. Linda’s family would like to thank the nurses and staff of Prairie Ridge and Hospice of Dubuque for their professional and compassionate care. The Tri-State Cremation Center has provided guidance and services to Linda’s family.  Online condolences may be shared with Linda’s family at www.tristatecremationcenter.com.