Former Pacific Palisades resident Linda Starey unexpectedly passed away in April while vacationing in La Quinta, California. Linda recently resided in Brentwood, although she considered Pacific Palisades to be her true home because she loved the sound of the Pacific Ocean and its breaking waves. She previously lived at the Edgewater Towers for over 10 years and in the Palisades Highlands, where she cared for her dog, Cocoa, a Doberman.
Linda was born in Cleveland and resided in Parma, Ohio during her childhood. In her twenties, she joined United Airlines as a flight attendant. Throughout her adult life, she proudly flew the globe and remained with United until her death. Linda felt privileged as she traveled the world unlike few others have, met and befriended many ordinary, distinctive and idiosyncratic people, and immersed herself in dozens of foreign cultures first hand and up close.
She was intent on learning to cook gourmet dishes and loved trying new food and restaurants in Los Angeles as well as in cities such as Beijing, Tokyo, Paris and New York. Upon learning of her passing, many of her fellow flight attendants naturally expressed sorrow for the sudden loss but then turned to remembering the many joyous moments they shared with Linda, in the skies and on the ground.
About 25 years ago, she began a parallel career as a realtor for Fred Sands, serving the Westside of Los Angeles. Since then, Linda has been guided and accompanied by her close friend and eventual business partner, Paul Glasgall. Paul recalls that “Linda showed a natural bent for interacting with people and she was named ‘Outstanding Realtor, First Year’ with the company and went on to achieve many more honors.” Linda became a member of the Director’s Circle, which honored the top 5% of all of Fred Sands’ 2,300 agents and sold residences in the Sea Ridge and the Peninsula projects as part of the Beverly Gold Team and it was one of Linda’s happiest times. For the past few years, she has been affiliated with the Sotheby’s International Realty office in Pacific Palisades.
Linda was a caring, giving and loving human being who often considered the well-being of others before her own. Several years ago when her mother became ill, Linda flew to Cleveland every month to make sure she was being properly cared for and to watch over her. She genuinely embraced the experience of being able to “give back” to her mother.
Beside her work with United Airlines and in real estate, Linda was an active person. She loved politics and had the opportunity to personally meet George H.W. Bush during one of his trips to Los Angeles. She was also privileged to attend the opening ceremonies of the Reagan Library in Simi Valley. And, her great love for animals brought her to the Los Angeles Zoo where she became one of the original sponsors of the new, revolutionary Chimpanzee exhibit and enjoyed the annual Beastly Ball events with close friends.
Her long-time friend, Paul Glasgall, may be reached at pglasgall@aol.com for information regarding planned memorial services. Donations in lieu of flowers may be made in Linda’s name to the American Diabetes Association or to Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles.
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