DALLAS, TX – Darlene Jeanette (Anderson) Harris-Lindsley, 88, passed away peacefully in Dallas, Texas on Tuesday, June 14, 2022. She was a person of deep faith, and her love of family was precious.
Daughter of Arthur and Zelma Anderson, Mom lived on the farm in Republic County, Kansas, attended a one room schoolhouse, and graduated from Courtland High School. She remembered her mom preparing many delicious Swedish dishes and wonderful pies with cherries picked from their orchard. She also recalled her chores on the farm, collecting eggs, milking the cows, and helping with the harvest.
After high school graduation, Mom went on to attend Kansas Wesleyan University where she was a cheerleader and a homecoming queen. She earned a bachelor’s degree in English and met our dad, Robert Harris. She later earned her master’s degree in Secondary Education from Wichita State University. Mom and Dad were married 46 years and she taught 38 of those years. She taught English at Salina South High School and then at Derby High School from which she retired in the early nineties. Dad passed away in 2001.
In 2012, Mom was reacquainted with and married Bob Lindsley, her college friend from 60 years prior to that time. They built a home together when they were 80 years old and lived a life of love until his passing in 2017.
Mom was an avid KU and K-State sports fan in addition to her alma mater Kansas Wesleyan University. She could talk a good game and knew most of the players’ names. She was a member of PEO, D L Chapter; Theater Guild; Kansas Wesleyan Auxiliary; Helianthus Club; Phi Kappa Honor Society; and of course, “the Y”.
Survivors include a son Bruce and daughter-in-law Lisa Harris of Dallas; daughter Lori and son-in-law Mike Payne of Wichita; granddaughters Mikala and husband Brandon Deck of Wichita; Gracie Harris and Eva Harris of Dallas; great-grandchildren Everett Deck and Cora Page Deck of Wichita; and special caretaker Lynn Kindall of Solomon.
Visitation will be from 5-8 p.m. Monday, June 20, 2022. A Celebration of Life will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 21st all at Ryan Mortuary, 137 North 8th Street, Salina. Burial will be in Roselawn Memorial Park, Salina.
Memorials may be made to the Kansas Wesleyan Alumni Association Scholarship Fund, Campus Box 40, 100 E. Claflin, Salina, KS 67401 or to the First United Methodist Church, 122 North 8th Street, Salina, KS 67401.