Remembering Linda

Dec 23, 2001 – July 18, 2020

Remembering Linda

July 18, 2023

Linda (middle) and her friends attending Bookcon at New York city Javis center in 2015

Today marks the third anniversary of Linda’s passing, a painful reminder of the unfathomable loss for our family, Linda’s friends and everyone who knew and loved her.

Linda had always wanted to be a writer who could use her words to advocate for those who are voiceless. Ever since she was little, she always carried a small notebook with her during our travels. Whenever we took a break, she would eagerly jot down her thoughts. What she wrote in her notebook would later become valuable materials for her writings. Her keen sense was truly remarkable. She vividly described the people we met along the way, capturing their subtle facial expressions, silent words in their eyes and small body movements that often went unnoticed by us. Her keen sense and her writings connected her with people on an emotional level and also made her empathetic with others’ hardship. She cared very deeply about her friends, her family and the environment we all live in. She used her writing to convey her observations, express her emotions and most importantly her thoughts on life and the world around us. She used her writing to call attention to the alarming situation of climate change and to express her sadness about the climate reality.

In 2018, Mr. David Buckel, a prominent civil rights lawyer turned environmental advocate, passed away in protest of the politics surrounding climate change in the United States and the US government’s environmental policies. Linda was deeply saddened not only by his death, but also by how his main message got lost in some of the subsequent media coverage about his death. In her entry to the Chappaqua Library Young Writers Contest, she wrote a poem in remembrance of Mr. David Buckel (shown left) and tried to once again call attention to the world that was burning due to global warming.

The best way to remember Linda is to continue what she had started, bringing awareness to more and more people about the climate reality and promoting actions on it. Through writings, we hope words can carry the power to inspire, to influence and to change.

Today, we are launching our first newsletter with featured column – “Connecting the Dots”, written by a very special guest, Miss Alexa Troob. Alexa is the winner of the 2023 Linda J. Zhang Writing Achievement Award, an award that recognizes exceptional young writers in the local school community. Alexa is a gifted writer who employs her writing skills to advocate for the environment and to remind people of the perils of climate change. Her letter to Representative Jones on impact of climate change and proposals for actions was one of 18 selected as finalists in a highly competitive Pulitzer contest. She wrote a stellar article to support local “Save Buttonhook Forest” effort while she interned at Inside Press.

“Connecting the Dots” sees through individual and seemingly unrelated events and shows how they are inter-connected due to climate change. “Connecting the Dots” also wants to connect each of us in our community so we can bind our individual efforts together to form a force of change to combat global warming.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Let’s all start to take that step.

Read the newsletter

“Sometime before dawn on April 14, [2018,] David Buckel doused himself with gas [in Prospect Park]. When responders arrived, the flames were going out. Mr. Buckel, a prominent civil rights lawyer turned environmental advocate, was dead. He was trying to call attention to pollution and global warming. “My early death by fossil fuel reflects what we are doing to ourselves,” he wrote in his email.”-The New York Times

THE GHOST OF DAVID BUCKEL

by Linda J. Zhang

I apologize to you

for the mess

for the scorched earth

& the body

I am not usually like this

by this I mean

the metaphor of burning

I mean

the sirens & the flashing lights

I know you did not expect

to find me here

a graveyard of a garden

in the stretches

before dawn has tamed itself

into morning

at once ash and breath

awaiting grief

awaiting the sky‘s hungry mouth

awaiting the wilting of flames

brimstone and burning wind

isn’t it funny

how fire is almost

living the way it consumes

so utterly

until there is

nothing left

why does nobody believe it?

*Italicized phrases are quoted from David Buckel.

July 18, 2022

In the Chappaqua Library Teen zone, there is a reading corner with a dark green colored chair and a round glass top table sitting against a glass wall. Light shines through the glass wall, forming a bright backdrop for the reading corner. Kids and adults alike, often sit in that chair while enjoying reading.
This reading corner was created in memory of Linda J. Zhang. Linda had spent many hours in the teen zone of the library as a volunteer librarian, a paid page or an avid reader. Reading has been one of Linda’s passions since she was a little girl. Wherever she went, she always had a book with her. Reading not only gave her knowledge, but also made her think deeply into the meaning of life.
On the bookcase next to the reading table, there is a plaque with a quote from Linda, “I have always sought out the path that is most closely aligned with my interests and values, no matter how difficult following it might be, whether that meant ascribing to a zero-waste lifestyle or learning a new skill”. That quote well describes who she was.
Her interests and values were essential to her while she was seeking a life with meaning. She took the values full-heartedly. Although many people have already pioneered the movement to fight climate change, it is still far from being a mainstream trend. When Linda decided to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle, she did it wholeheartedly. Even it was not necessarily a popular one and far from being a social norm. From carrying her utensils everywhere to avoid single use plastic to shopping only at second hand stores. She has researched sustainable alternatives for daily consumables, tried DIY projects as replacement of store bought items that come with plastic bottles.
There are people who choose to take a path least traveled. Some people even take the most difficult steps to create a path that didn’t exist before. But when more and more people follow, that path widens and becomes a road.
Next time when you have a chance to visit the Chappaqua library and sit in that reading corner, keep Linda in your thoughts and think about what change you can bring to make our world a better place. Every change, big or small, matters. In the grand scale, individual effort seems minimal, but collectively we can make an impact.
It is such a difficult and painful fact to share that today marks the second year since we lost Linda. Yet, we always feel her presence in our hearts and minds.

July 18, 2021

Exactly one year ago today, our world changed forever. Our beloved daughter Linda J. Zhang left the world she cared about so deeply. One year, 365 days, every single day was a painful reminder of what we have lost. Every single day we longed to see her smile, to hear her laugh, to talk to her and to hug her. There is nothing more painful than to live without our loved one. This has been the hardest year of our life.

During this year, the outpouring of remembrance of Linda and support from friends, colleagues, neighbors, and people from near and far has given us the strength to move on. With your help, we have channeled our grief and launched the Linda J. Zhang Memorial Foundation to continue her passion to help the environment.

To commemorate the one-year anniversary of her passing, we would like to share a story about Linda going the extra length to avoid using disposable plastics in her daily life. One day in the summer of 2019 when she first arrived in China to begin her gap year, she wanted to enjoy some freshly squeezed fruit juice at a local market. She ordered the drink and quickly gestured to the server to use her own reusable bottle instead of the disposable cup. Apparently, that was the first time the server had heard such a request and did not know how to proceed. Even in such a bit awkward situation, Linda still went on to explain her reason with her not-so-perfect Mandarin and dad’s occasional help in between. At the end, the server understood her and happily agreed to accommodate her request. Linda was happy knowing that she didn’t have to add another disposable plastic cup and straw into the landfill.

Everytime, when we throw away something, it is never true “away”, that is how the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” has been formed. Individual effort seems so trivial and its effectiveness is often in doubt. But collectively we can make a big difference. Any major social changes all start with a small group of people leading the way. With more and more people joining the force, something used to be “abnormal” becomes a trend, then a trend becomes a “norm”.

Through the Linda J. Zhang Foundation’s work, we hope more and more people will join us and be the persons who lead the way. We hope our effort will help to bring a better future for generations to come. We know that Linda is that biggest shining star in the sky and is with us in our hearts and thoughts along the way.

On this day, please keep Linda in your thoughts and if you can, do one thing that will positively impact our planet.

AWARDS

Regina Velasco and Amy Yang Won The Linda J. Zhang Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Award

Congratulations to Alexa Troob For Winning The Linda J. Zhang Award For Writing Achievement

Jessica Ji Won The Linda J. Zhang Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Award

Congratulations to Devisi Goel For Winning The Linda J. Zhang Award For Writing Achievement

Two Horace Greeley Seniors Win The Linda J. Zhang Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Award

Erica Dunne Wins The Inaugural Linda J. Zhang Award For Writing Achievement