Lynda Orme

In the early morning hours of Wednesday, April 23, 2014, Lynda Diane Garrett Melanson Orme passed quietly in her sleep, returning to the awaiting arms of her loving parents Big Jim and Ginger. While her death was sudden, her family has taken great comfort in knowing she will no longer suffer from the illnesses she has battled for the last 10 years and may finally find peace and comfort in the loving arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ. On August 31, 1955, James Russell Garrett and Virginia Ann Garrison welcomed their first child Lynda while living in Miami, Florida. Hurricane Diane made landfall at the time of Lynda’s birth, so her parents gave her the middle name Diane to remember the event. With the prospect of starting a new job, Jim took his small family to Louisville, Kentucky while Lynda was still just an infant. Over the next few years the family grew with each move to New York, Virginia and finally Tennessee. Lynda spent her formative years in Memphis, graduating from Bartlett High School. After which she attended Brigham Young University. While Lynda was living in Provo, Utah, the Garrett family once again packed up, this time settling for good in Glendale, Arizona. Despite all the moves, Lynda always considered Memphis home. During the summer school break from university, Lynda travelled to Arizona to be with her family. While there she met — and later married — Mark James Melanson. Mark, originally from Franklin, Massachusetts, was attending Arizona State University when they met. In the fall of 1974, Lynda and Mark were married in Glendale, Arizona. In June of 1975, they welcomed their first child, Melissa Kay, while Mark was stationed at the U.S. Army post Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. Jamie Garrett joined the family in December 1976. In 1977, Mark was stationed to Wurzburg, Germany. Lynda felt it important her children take advantage of the many opportunities afforded to them by living in a different country. Choosing to live off post in the small village Giebelstadt, Lynda learned to speak German fluently, as did her children when she sent them to a German school. The family grew by one when Corilyn Keziah was born in September 1978. The family returned to the United States in January 1980 and lived once again in El Paso, Texas. Jonathan Spencer — the fourth and last child — joined the Melanson clan in August 1980. Lynda returned to college while in El Paso so she could find full-time work to support her family as a newly single mother. She graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso with a degree in English and secondary education and began student teaching at Eastwood High School. She landed a full-time teaching job at J.M. Hanks High School in English and became the Speech and Debate coach. Eventually she focused only on teaching Communication classes and built an award-winning Speech and Debate team. She was consistently ranked as a top coach with numerous state and national champions. In 1998, Lynda met Steven John Orme — originally from Preston, Idaho. The couple fell in love and married in El Paso on November 27, 1998. Steve took his new bride to live permanently in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where he had his own business Pioneer Art & Frame, as well as allowing them to be closer to Steve’s three children. Lynda retired from teaching to focus on her love of cross stitching. She opened the cross stitch store Forever Stitching while Steve renamed his business Forever Framing. She also started Forever in My Heart — a cross stitch design business — with her close friend Wendy Peatross. On February 25, 2000 — one year and three months after their wedding — Steve and Lynda were sealed in the Idaho Falls Idaho temple. Lynda is survived by her husband Steven; children Melissa (Alan) Dawes, Jamie (Adriana) Melanson, Corilyn Melanson and Jonathan (Lindsay) Melanson; bonus children Jason (April) Orme, Tanya (Andrew) Fuell and Nathan (Gena) Orme; siblings Cindy (Bart) Winters, Tammy (Andrew) Reid, Jeffrey (Liz) Garrett, James (Arlene) Garrett Jr, Todd (Casey) Garrett and Jeremy (Kristina) Garrett. She also had 20 grandchildren who lovingly referred to her as Granna. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, April 29, 2014, at 11:00 am at the Eagle Rock Stake Center (2020 South Charlotte Drive, Idaho Falls, ID, 83402.) Friends are welcome to visit with the family from 7:00-8:30 pm on Monday, April 28, 2014, at Wood Funeral Home (273 North Ridge Avenue, Idaho Falls, ID 83402). The family will also be available for visitation from 10:00 to 10:45 am at the funeral location prior to the service. The burial will be in the Fielding Memorial Park Cemetery (600 South Yellowstone Highway, Idaho Falls, ID 83402.)