Linda Freeman Ratcliffe

Linda Freeman Ratcliffe, age 79, of Hinesville, Georgia died of pancreatic cancer on October 3, 2023.

She was born in Albany, Georgia on May 3, 1944 to Elkin and Nell Freeman. Linda grew up in Savannah, Georgia and lived there until she graduated from Warren A. Candler School of Nursing in 1965.   

Linda met her husband, Tom, at a youth group event with the Whitfield Methodist Church during the summer of 1962.  
In November 1965, Linda went into the Army Nurses Corps. In January 1966, she was stationed at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina.  During her service, she was the Head Nurse of the Officer's Ward, Female Medical and Surgical Ward, the Dermatology Ward and the Neurology Ward.

Linda and Tom got married on December 17, 1967 in Savannah.  They have three children, Thomas J. "Sebe" Ratcliffe III, Stephanie D. Ratcliffe and Lisa Ratcliffe Burkhalter.  Linda treasured her time with their five grandchildren, Kirstyn Burkhalter, Cole Burkhalter, Conner Burkhalter, Sara Beth Ratcliffe and Garrett Ratcliffe. She also had a special place in her heart for her dog, Raven, who stayed close by her.

After moving to Hinesville, Linda and Tom joined the First United Methodist Church.  Linda helped start Club 55 for older church members and planned monthly activities for them.  She also served as the Chair of Council of Ministries and Chair of the Pastor Parish Relations Committee.  She was actively involved with the Boy Scouts and Girl Scout Troops, volunteered at schools, and was on the originating charters for several organizations involved in efforts to meet the needs of the community, like the Tri County Protective Agency, which helps abused women and children.  

Linda worked for the Liberty County Health Department.  She led the Community Decision Making (CDM) program under which residents assessed the medical facilities and healthcare needs within the County.  Liberty County CDM Board implemented solutions such as Hospice and medical services for residents under 200% of the Federal Qualified Poverty Level and the uninsured.

The Public Health District Director and Linda were responsible for creating the Coastal Medical Assistance Clinic (CMAC), a free walk-in clinic for residents of Liberty and Long Counties. Linda enlisted physician and nurse volunteers to provide free medical care and ladies from the First United Methodist Church to do clerical work. She funded the program with grants she wrote, donations and some of her personal money and as the program grew she got companies and locals to donate medical supplies.  Some volunteering surgeons were willing to do simple surgeries for free and the hospital allowed CMAC to use their operating rooms at greatly reduced rates and to pay for supplies at cost.

Linda supported the community by writing weekly newspaper articles on health prevention, disorders and medical services for the Coastal Courier newspaper.  She later served as the District Public Relations and Information Specialist and wrote weekly newspaper articles for six counties and eleven newspapers.  Linda helped launch some of the first on-line links (www.gachd.org) describing all the services supplied by the Coastal Health District. Before retiring at age 65, Linda wrote two Federally Qualified Healthcare Grants for the residents of Liberty and Long Counties that led to the creation of new clinics known today as Diversity. All the supplies from CMAC were donated to Diversity.

Linda will always be remembered for the way that she cared for her family and served others.  Her memory will live on in the hearts of all those who loved her. 

A service will be held for Linda at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 7, 2023 at the First United Methodist Church, 203 N Main St, Hinesville, GA 31313.  Visitation will be held following the service in the church sanctuary.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that you consider making a donation in memory of Linda Ratcliffe to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital https://www.stjude.org or other charitable organization.

Carter Funeral Home is handling the arrangements. To share a memory or leave a condolence, please visit www.carteroglethorpe.com.