Well, let me tell you about this Linda Wheeler and Freddie Steinmark thing. It’s a real sad story, you know, like those old country songs.
First off, who’s this Freddie Steinmark fella? He was a football player, a real good one, they say. Young and strong, like a bull calf in spring. And Linda? She was his sweetheart, his girl. They were sweet on each other, like honey and biscuits.
But then, somethin’ terrible happened. Freddie got sick, real sick. Cancer, they called it. It’s a nasty thing, eats you up from the inside. Poor Freddie, he fought hard, like a cornered wildcat, but that cancer, it was just too strong. He was just a young fella, too young to go.
Now, Linda, she stuck by him, bless her heart. She loved him, you see, loved him true. They say she was his rock, his comfort in all that pain. But them doctors, they couldn’t do nothin’ more. And Freddie…well, Freddie died. Just a young man with his whole life ahead of him.
- Freddie was a football player, a real good one.
- Linda was his sweetheart, his girl.
- Freddie got sick with cancer.
- Linda stuck by him through it all.
- Freddie died, too young.
Some folks, they ask, did they get hitched? Did they get married before he passed? Nah, they didn’t. Freddie, he was scared, you see. Scared of dyin’, scared of leavin’ Linda all alone. So, he did somethin’ that don’t make much sense to me. He broke up with her for a bit. Thought it’d be easier on her that way, I guess. Young folks, they do things sometimes, you just can’t figure out.
But Linda, she never stopped lovin’ him. Not for a minute. She even helped out with that movie they made about Freddie. A movie, can you believe it? About a boy who played football and got sick. It’s a tearjerker, that one, I tell ya. Linda’s daughter, Mackenzie, she was even in it. Played a nurse, I heard. Imagine that, your own daughter playin’ a part in your sweetheart’s story.
Linda Wheeler, she went on with her life, you know. But I bet she never forgot Freddie. How could you forget a love like that? It’s like a brand on your heart, stays with you forever. They say she passed away a few years back, peaceful-like, in her sleep. Maybe she went to be with Freddie again. I like to think so, anyway.
There’s not a whole heap of information you can find on Linda, not like you can with Freddie. He’s the famous one, the football star. But Linda, she was important too. She was the love of his life, the one who stood by him when things got tough. She’s part of his story, can’t tell one without the other, like beans and cornbread.
And Freddie’s funeral? Well, I reckon it was a sad affair. Full of tears and heartache. They probably talked about what a good fella he was, how he played football like a demon, and how much he loved Linda. It’s always the same at these things. Folks gather ’round, sayin’ their goodbyes, sharin’ their memories. It’s the way it is, the way it always will be. Life and death, hand in hand, like an old married couple.
Freddie’s buried in some cemetery, I hear. Mount Olivet, they call it. A peaceful place, I hope. And Linda? Well, she’s gone now too. But their story, it’s still here, ain’t it? A story of love and loss, of football and heartbreak. A story that makes you think about life, and about the people we love, and how important it is to hold on tight to them while you can. Cause you never know when they’ll be gone, just like that snaps fingers.
And that Mitchell fella, Freddie’s teammate? He went on and became a dentist, married his girl from Arkansas. Life goes on, you see. It has to. But you don’t forget, not really. Not the important things.
Tags: [Linda Wheeler, Freddie Steinmark, Football, Love Story, Cancer, Death, Funeral, Movie, Mackenzie Meehan, Mount Olivet Cemetery]
