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Letter to the editor

A free spirit with a serious side, she was a friend to all

Riding her Honda sport motorcycle to work Tuesday, she died in a traffic accident.

By STEPHANIE HAYES
Published July 19, 2007

LARGO - Sherri Linkous had her own zippy Honda sport motorcycle, but she didn't prefer it.

Whenever possible, she'd jump on the back of her boyfriend's Harley-Davidson. Joe "Casper" Luciano would rest his feet on the pegs. She'd rest her legs on his. She'd nestle her head onto his shoulder.

At 30 miles per hour, they'd cruise.

Linkous died in a traffic accident Tuesday July 17, 2007 while riding her motorcycle to work.

On Wednesday, Luciano sat inside Quaker Steak and Lube in Clearwater, mirrored sunglasses hiding his eyes.

Linkous and Luciano met there on bike night in March, he said. She first noticed his smile, then his bike, covered with images of Casper the Friendly Ghost.

"We were identical," he said. "I would speak her words before she would."

Linkous was a tall, tan 38-year-old biker from Largo. She loved to shoot pool, ride roller coasters and work outdoors.

But beneath the free-wheeling surface, there was a gentle nurturer, committed to forging a better life.

She worked full time as a facilities manager at First Advantage, a St. Petersburg company. She'd run mail around, fix leaks and handle power outages.

She'd fix her friends, too.

Linkous would pop her head into the next cubicle to check on co-workers.

On bad days, she'd rub their backs, they said. She spent time researching ways receptionist Cynthia Plummer could get her poetry published.

She was the unofficial office counselor. Friends would spill problems, but Linkous wouldn't get sappy. She'd shoot from the hip and give a brash, honest opinion.

It's how she approached life, said her husband, Terry Linkous. The two were separated.

"She was a very bubbly and fun to be around and sometimes, the clown of the group," he said. "But she was also very serious, and sometimes she was brutally honest. Brutally."

She had two grown children and a granddaughter. Friends called her "the hottest grandma."

She ate incessantly and had an insatiable sweet tooth, but she was thin as a rail.

She was desperate to make more of herself.

Linkous dropped out of high school to care for her siblings, Terry Linkous said. Their mother had died at a young age.

Last year, Linkous finally went back to school and earned her GED. At night, she was training to become a nurse, taking classes at Concorde Career Institute in Tampa. On lunch breaks at First Advantage, she would sit in her car, studying and doing homework.

Recently, she scored an "A" on a difficult test, friends said. At work, she showed it off, glowing with pride.

She would have graduated next month.

Stephanie Hayes can be reached at shayes@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8857.

[Last modified July 18, 2007, 23:48:22]