Funeral Details

Linda S. Rothstein

October 23, 1939 - October 31, 2021

SERVICE INFORMATION

Date and Time

Monday, November 8, 2021 at 11:00 AM

Memorial Service

Rothstein Residence
1700 East 56th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60637
Get Directions

Interment - Private

Memorial Contributions

Greater Chicago Food Depository
4100 West Ann Lurie Place
Chicago, Illinois 60632
www.chicagosfoodbank.org





OBITUARY

Linda S. Rothstein nee Smith, 82, of Chicago, IL died on October 31, in Hyde Park, after a brief illness. She was born on October 23, 1939, in Des Moines, IA, where she attended Theodore Roosevelt High School and, she would want us to mention, went to the state championship for table tennis. Linda came to Chicago in 1957 to attend The University of Chicago on a full scholarship, where she graduated with an AB in History in 1961. She subsequently worked on research projects at The University of Chicago, and later wrote the grant that established the Southeast Chicago Alcohol Treatment Center, where she served as its founding director. In the early 1980s, Linda worked at an investment banking firm where she helped take a reproductive technology company public. In 1988, Linda took her first editorial position at The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, keepers of the Doomsday Clock, where she would eventually rise to Editor-in-Chief, a position she held until her retirement in 2005. Brilliant and opinionated, nearly unbeatable at Scrabble, and a daily finisher of the New York Times crossword puzzle in pen, Linda loved Hyde Park, a glass of Sancerre, a Victorian novel, watching old movies late at night, and sharing one of her impeccable meals with family and friends. Beloved wife of the late Stanley H. Rothstein, she will be missed deeply by her children Jandos Rothstein (Jan) and Jason Rothstein (Annie); her grandchildren Sarah, Emily, Jascha, and Seraphina; and her brother, Noel Smith. The memorial service will be Monday 11AM at 1700 E. 56th St., Chicago. Interment at Oak Woods Cemetery was previously held. Memorial donations may be made in Linda’s name to Greater Chicago Food Depository, 4100 W. Ann Lurie Place, Chicago, IL 60632, www.chicagosfoodbank.org. To attend the funeral live stream, please visit our website. Arrangements by Chicago Jewish Funerals - Skokie Chapel, 847.229.8822, www.cjfinfo.com


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Sincere condolences to Linda's family. My thoughts are with you at this sad time. Linda was a remarkable woman and she will be missed.

Rosalie Guttman
November 5, 2021
I met Linda at the bus stop on the corner of 55th Street and Lake Park Avenue in the late summer of 2018. We began chatting, and I felt an immediate warm compatibility with her. I spontaneously invited her to join the book group I had been in for some years, and which I sensed she might enjoy. She accepted with pleasure, and so we in the group had the pleasure of her witty, warm, generous, and brave presence for these all too short years. When she hosted our meeting, the food and wine were utterly delicious, and she was so happy to be able to share her wonderful view. We knew of her illness, but she downplayed it so much that it was easy to forget about it, and to see and hear only the vibrant, brilliant woman she was. Linda was one of the most gallant, elegantly civilized, admirable, and loveable people that I have ever come to know, and just think! by chance waiting for a bus. It felt fated. I mourn her deeply and I offer my most heartfelt condolences to her family.

Rebecca West
November 5, 2021