Thelma Linam Webber

HOBBS NEWS-SUN • WEDNESDAY, MAY 18, 2005

Thelma “Gen” Linam
Webber, 98, of Hobbs went to
be with the Lord on Saturday,
May 14, 2005, after a brief illness.
Her funeral service will
be Thursday, May 19, 2005, at 1
p.m. at Taylor Memorial
Baptist Church with Dr. Dean
Mathis, pastor, officiating.
Burial will follow at Prairie
Haven Cemetery.
Born on October 7, 1906, to
pioneers J. Will and Nellie
Taylor, Thelma married Virgil
Linam December 25, 1921, and
homesteaded
in Lea
County. For
many years
their buffalo
herd was
a popular
sight near
the family
homestead.
Thelma also
did a great
deal to preserve
the heritage of those
who settled Lea County, founding
the Linam Ranch
Museum, widely appreciated
for the quality of the collection
and its faithful representation
of frontier life. Thelma
wrote a personal account of
her experiences in Lea County
titled “Life on the Prairies:
Settling the Llano Estacado.”
In 1990 Thelma was inducted
into the Lea County Cowboy
Hall of Fame. Thelma was
also recognized for her efforts
to promote range conservation.
Thelma has long been appreciated
for her contributions to
civic and Christian causes.
She was a founding member
on the board of trustees of the
College of the Southwest,
serving continuously from
1961 until the time of her
death. A devoted supporter of
the college, Thelma Linam
Webber Hall is named in her
honor. In 1995 the College of
the Southwest granted
Thelma an honorary doctorate
in recognition of her lifelong
efforts to further higher
education and the goals of the
College of the Southwest.
Most importantly, Thelma's
deep Christian convictions
punctuate her entire life.
She served from 1934-52 as
director of the Southeastern
Baptist Association, the
longest tenure in the Southern
Baptist Convention at the time
and was one of the founding
families of Glorieta Baptist
Conference Center. She was a
faithful member of Taylor
Memorial Baptist Church for
many years and labored for
many other Christian causes.
Thelma was preceded in
death by three husbands.
Virgil Linam passed away in
1959. In 1963 Thelma married
Herman Adlong who died in
1969. In 1972 she married Ladd
Webber. In 1983 Ladd went to
be with the Lord.
Thelma and Virgil Linam
had two daughters, Bruce
Carlin (deceased) and Faye
Klein, six grandchildren (two
of whom preceded her in
death), eleven great-grandchildren
and five great-greatgrandchildren
(one of whom
is deceased). With her marriages
into the Adlong and
Webber families, Thelma's
extended family multiplied
greatly. Thelma often said that
each member of the Adlong
and Webber families had a
very special place in her
heart.
Viewing will be from noon-6
p.m. on Wednesday and 8-11:30
a.m. Thursday at Chapel of
Hope.
The family requests memorials
to the College of the
Southwest or Taylor
Memorial Baptist Church in
lieu of flowers.
Webber