William Linden

Torrington- William Linden, 102, died Sunday, August 16, 2015 at Litchfield Woods Health Care Center. He was the beloved husband of the late Madeline (Battapaglia) Linden, who died in 2007.

Mr. Linden was born in Cologne, Germany on April 28, 1913, son of the late Anton and Katharina (Dernbach) Linden.  He left his native country in 1928 for the United States at age 15 at the insistence of his parents because of the rise of Hitler and the Nazis to power.  He was never to see his father again.

He arrived in New York City on New Year’s Eve and went to live with his uncle.  He resided in Manhattan and met and later married the love of his life, Madeline.  He then moved to Queens and raised his three children while working for the U.S. Postal Service.   Following his retirement, he moved to Torrington where he lived for almost 30 years. 

He was a WWII Army Veteran, member of the DAV and NARFE.  He was the proud recipient of a Purple Heart, having sustained life threatening injuries in battle.  

Survivors include a daughter, Kathleen Linden, and her husband, Edward Mutrie, of Plymouth, MA; a son, Robert Linden, and his wife Carol, of Torrington; a daughter-in-law, Denise Linden, of Barkhamsted; six grandchildren: William Linden, Jr. and his wife Katie, Kirk Linden and his wife Pamela, Maria (Linden) Bieluch and her husband Jon, Ryan Linden, Brad Linden and his wife Jennifer, and Ashley (Linden) Cerruto and her husband Garrit; eight great-grandchildren:  Jesse, Nora, Kennedy, Casey, Nolan, Austin, Ava and Dexter.  A great-grandson and great-granddaughter are expected this Fall and Winter, respectively.  He was predeceased by his beloved son, William A. Linden, Sr. in 2009.

Despite any obstacles, his glass was always full.  His love of God, Family and Country sustained him throughout his life.  He was a hero in every sense and an inspiration to all.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Friday, August 21, 2015 at 11:00a.m. at St. Francis of Assisi Church, 160 Main St., Torrington. Burial with full military honors will follow in Village Cemetery, New Hartford. Gleeson-Ryan Funeral Home, 258 Prospect St., Torrington is in care of arrangements.

At the request of the family, in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, PO Box 758517 Topeka, KS 66675 or at www.woundedwarriorproject.org/donate.aspx.

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