Linda Wright, 46

Wednesday, April 4, 2007

Linda Jean Phares Wright, 46, of Mountain Home, died March 26, 2007, in Boulder, Colo.

A memorial service was held on Tuesday, April 2, at Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel.

Wright was born Aug. 27, 1960, in Dover, Del., to Carl Sr. and Patricia Phares.

"Linda was a believer in dreams and she lived her's to the fullest," her family said. "She was a ranch hand, a roper, a farrier, a waitress, scuba driver, sailor, daughter, sister, great aunt and a mother."

Linda came with her family to Mountain Home in 1969, where her parents purchased Linda's first horse, Nelli, and sparked Linda's passion for horses. Linda went on to be a ranch hand in Nevada and Idaho as well as a farrier in Oregon, California and Hawaii. She moved back to Idaho to be close to her mother who was battling cancer.

She started a business, which allowed her to travel all over the country. While home she found enjoyment driving her Amish buggy with her horse, Gatewood.

"Linda was a lover of life," her family said. "She dreamed big and lived big everyday. Linda's greatest accomplishment was raising her son, Newt Chappell, who is a U.S. Marine, currently serving in Iraq, and her daughter, Courtney Jean Chappell, who is a musician currently living in Arizona.

"Linda had a personality that brought light into every room. There was no task she was afraid of.

"Linda's spirit is a light to us all and she will be greatly missed."

Wright is survived by: her son, Newt; her daughter, Courtney; her brother, Carl Jr. and his wife, Cheri Phares; her twin sister Laura and her husband, Leonard Hillman; her companion Walt Ireland; her best friend Newt Wright, and several nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by both her parents, Carl Sr. and Patricia Phares.

The family requests no flowers or gifts. Instead, donations in her memory are suggested to the Mountain States Tumor Institute, 308 E. Hawaii Ave., Nampa, ID 83686.