Linda Ruth Barnett

Dr. Linda Ruth Barnett passed away at home in Durham on November 13, 2025. Linda was a beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, aunt, grandmother, therapist, and friend. Her final days were filled with sunshine, music, poetry, and countless stories of the difference she made in the lives of others. Her family deeply grieves her loss while finding peace in the fact that she is no longer in pain.

Linda was born in Yreka, California in 1950 – a later-in-life surprise to her parents, Chester and Ruth, and her older sisters, Lois and Charlotte. She graduated from Stanford University in 1972 with a degree in Psychology. A student during the height of the Civil Rights movement, Linda was politicized through activism for racial and gender equality, against the Vietnam war, and in support of strong environmental protections. She championed social justice and progressive causes for the rest of her life, and encouraged everyone around her to do the same.

Linda moved to Lexington to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Kentucky. Outside of her psychological studies, Linda appreciated the opportunity to take a creative class with the poet, Wendell Berry, and spend more time with her mother’s extended Kentucky family. She completed her PhD in 1981 and moved to Durham to start a fellowship at Duke. While at Duke, she met a fellow clinical psychologist, Bert Loro, through their mutual friend. They fell in love and got married in 1983, shortly after moving to Rochester, NY where Linda joined the faculty at the University of Rochester. Their daughter, Vanessa, was born in Rochester in 1985 and Carina followed in 1987.

While Linda and Bert loved their work and circle of friends in Rochester, they didn’t love the long, cold winters. The family returned to Durham in 1990, and Linda opened a private psychology practice. She also spent many years at the VA Hospital in Durham helping to launch the Veteran Women’s Comprehensive Health Center. Linda cared deeply about her patients. She found ongoing connection and purpose in her therapy practice for four decades, until her health prevented her from working.

Linda and Bert had a loving marriage full of laughter, spirited conversation, adventures, and Duke basketball fandom. Linda adored and was so proud of both her daughters. She especially cherished their time together reading stories before bed, walking to school, helping with English and history homework assignments (no math!) and creating the most beautiful, complicated school projects of all time. Later in life, she relished reading some of those same favorite stories to her grandchild, Wren.

Linda sought joyful connection and nurtured strong community-ties in every aspect of her life. Upon moving back to Durham, Linda and Bert joined Westminster Presbyterian Church and were faithful members and leaders for the rest of their respective lives. Linda found a creative outlet in scrapbooking that blended her love of photography and storytelling. For more than twenty years, she organized regular scrapbooking nights and weekend workshops as a Creative Memories consultant. One of her happiest places was the dining room: surrounded by friends and a table covered in photos, colorful paper, and an explosion of stickers. An avid reader, Linda was also a member of at least 3 book clubs at any given moment. Linda firmly believed you could never read or have too many books. The shelves in her bedroom (and living room, and dining room, and office) overflowed with books collected over the years, including no fewer than 20 volumes of Virginia Woolf’s collected works. She was particularly grateful for the friendships formed with dear neighbors over the past two decades through the Mary Dell book club. During COVID, Linda joined a Conscious Aging group and met virtually with a number of other kindred spirits contemplating how to live a good life.

Linda loved to travel with her family and especially loved to explore beautiful, natural places. Always a “California girl” at heart, she spent many happy weeks sharing favorite Golden State places with her family, including Pajaro Dunes, Yosemite National Park, and Fallen Leaf Lake. One of her favorite experiences at Stanford was spending a semester at the Stanford-in-Germany campus in Beutelsbach, where she formed lifelong friendships. Linda cherished their regular reunions, and returned to “The ‘Burg” three times with the Stanford-in-Germany crew to explore new parts of the region, enjoy afternoon kuchen, and dance in the Rathskellar. 

She is survived by her daughter Vanessa Barnett-Loro (Greg Herschlag) and grandchild Wren; her daughter Carina Barnett-Loro (Hafeez Dhalla), step-grandchildren Aiden and Caleb and granddog Luke; her sisters Lois Brownson (Jack) and Charlotte Turner (Harry); and her nieces Cheryl (Wayne), Janet (Rick), Kaarsten, and Kim. She is preceded in death by her parents, Chester and Ruth; her soulmate and husband of 25 years, Bert Loro; their family dogs, Jessie and Oliver; and a host of dear friends and extended family members.

In the last few months of her life, Linda’s women friends and a dedicated team of health professionals provided unrelenting care for her physical and mental health. Her daughters feel tremendous gratitude for the support provided by Linda’s legion. Their dedication and kindness made it possible for Linda to remain at home until the end.

A celebration of Linda’s life will be held Saturday, December 6th at 2:00 PM at Westminster Presbyterian Church. In honor of Linda, we hope you’ll take a walk somewhere beautiful with someone you love, find a cozy corner of your home to read a book or work on a puzzle (bonus points if you don’t go to sleep until it is complete!), and eat an enormous bowl of ice cream.

In lieu of flowers, the family invites Linda’s loved ones to donate to one of the following organizations working to address food insecurity, community mental health, and children’s literacy in Durham – causes about which Linda cared deeply: Interfaith Food Shuttle, El Futuro, or Book Harvest.