Linda K. Cingilli passed away peacefully at her home on Sunday, August 20, 2017. She lived a full and happy life, even through her years of physical confinement.
She was born Linda Lee Kozik on January 14, 1945 in Glen Lyon, Pennsylvania to Stanley and Gertrude Kozik. She attended Newport Township High School and Nesbitt Memorial Nursing School. After graduating with her RN credentials, she went to New York City and worked as an RN at Lenox Hill Hospital. While working in the city, she met the love of her life, Orhan Cingilli from Istanbul, Turkey. After a brief courtship, they were married in her hometown and moved south to Knoxville, Tennessee where they have spent the past 51 years.
Linda began her Tennessee nursing career at Fort Sanders Hospital. She also worked at Northwest General and St. Mary's Hospital before landing at East Tennessee Baptist Hospital where she spent the next 30+ years. She sure did love her Baptist family. As the years went by, she left floor nursing and went into Utilization Review and then Quality Assurance and Risk Management. She was in charge of these programs for many years. She was instrumental in beginning the state of Tennessee's Quality Assurance Professional Association as well as the National Association of Quality Assurance Professionals. She was president of both of these groups and also editor of the newsletters for many years. She loved her career.
Linda also loved her family. She was inordinately proud of her children and grandchildren and anyone she spoke to was sure to hear Grammy tell all about them. She loved to travel, especially to Turkey where Orhan's family lived. They made seven wonderful trips over the years to visit with family and tour the countryside. She loved her extended Turkish family very much and considered her sister-in-law Gulser to be the sister she never had.
Linda loved cooking, shopping, flower gardening, decorating cakes, dogs, the Lady Vols, the color green, and Christmas! She will be remembered for her generous and loud, loving nature and the way she tried to make everyone feel special.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Stanley and Gertude Kozik.
She is survived by her devoted husband, Orhan Cingilli, her children: Pinky (Tony) Young of Signal Mountain, Ayse (J.L.) Grillot of Knoxville, and Or (Ladonna) Cingilli, Jr. of Lookout Mountain and her grandchildren: Savanna Cingilli, Cecilia Young, Lindsey Grillot, Mallory Young, Sierra Cingilli, Olivia Young, and her "prince", Noah Cingilli.
Linda was of the Roman Catholic faith and was a member of All Saints Catholic Church. Visitation will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 23, from 6-8 p.m. at Mann's Heritage Chapel/Rose Mortuary on Kingston Pike. Funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 24, at All Saints Catholic Church on Cedar Bluff Rd. Burial service will be at 3 p.m. at Oak Ridge Memorial Gardens.