WILMINGTON — Linda K. Pierce, 79, died on Wednesday, Sept. 16, in Wilmington, N.C., following a long illness.
She was a social worker specializing in drug and alcohol addiction counseling, serving in roles of increasing responsibility from 1987 to 2008. In Indiana, she was a therapist for Comprehensive Mental Health Services, and in North Carolina, she was a regional director for Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Raleigh.
Pierce was a 1965 graduate of Walter P. Chrysler Memorial High School in New Castle, Ind., and a 1987 summa cum laude graduate of Ball State University, in Muncie, Ind. She also achieved her master’s degree in social work from Indiana University, also graduating summa cum laude, in 1991. She was a proud member of the National Association of Social Workers, Beta Sigma Phi, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the Democratic Party.
Growing up in New Castle, Ind., she attended St. Anne’s School and was an active member of its parish for many years. She also attended Saint Mary of the Woods in Terre Haute, Ind.
In Wilmington, she was a member of St. Mark’s Parish. In her retirement years, she enjoyed traveling to Ireland and Italy, visiting Wrightsville Beach, playing with her grandchildren, and walking with her faithful dogs in their Murrayville neighborhood.
She is survived by her daughter Jill Vale (Brian), her grandchildren Connor and Corina Vale, her son Andy (Beth) Pierce, and her brother Larry Clinton. She was preceded in death by her father James Clinton in 1964; her mother Clara Belle (McWilliams, Clinton) Winchester in 2012; her husband of 52 years Charles Pierce, in 2023; and her brother Ed Clinton in 2020.
A graveside service will be held at St. Anne’s Cemetery in Henry County, Indiana, at a later date. Donations may be made in her honor to Lower Cape Fear LifeCare.
