Linda Lee Hayes, devoted wife, mother, sister, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully on Sunday, July 19, 2026. Born November 14, 1941, in Roanoke, Virginia, to Frederick Lee Corstaphney and Ruth Beach Corstaphney, Linda grew up alongside her sister Marty in the Raleigh Court and Grandin neighborhoods. She and her family later lived on Bluemont, where many of the stories that defined her life began.

In 1964, she married Oscar Bryan Hayes "OB," and together they raised two sons while moving as OB's work took the family from Roanoke to Knoxville, Beckley, Christiansburg, Lynchburg, and finally back home to Roanoke. Through every move, Linda kept the household running with quiet determination (well, not too quiet). When people asked what she did, her sons proudly answered, "She's a domestic engineer." The title suited her better than any formal job description, though she had earned a degree in Anthropology after years of dedicated study at community colleges, the University of Tennessee, Beckley College, and finally Roanoke College, the same campus where she and OB had originally met.

Linda worked hard for that degree while raising her boys, dressing them up for snow days, shuttling them to Spring Run Pool and practices, and managing the endless logistics of family life. She loved her beauty-parlor days, Talbots and TJ Maxx finds, fried shrimp, Rita's cherry Icees, taffy, Dairy Queen Dilly Bars, and of course Dr. Pepper. Most of all, she loved her family.

She is survived by her two sons: Robert Bryan Hayes and his wife, Jeannette; and Frederick Hunter Hayes. Robert and Jeannette's 3 daughters are Jordan (husband Paul and their daughters Ruby and Rowan), Skyler, and Audrey. Hunter's children are Jake and Lilly. Linda is also survived by her sister, Marty Corstaphney Cumming, her niece Tiffany Barclay Cherasaro, and Tiffany's son Tyler; and the many friends and extended family who knew her warmth, humor, and unwavering care.

She was preceded in death by her husband of more than forty years, Oscar Bryan Hayes ("OB"), who died July 7, 2006, and by her parents, Frederick Lee Corstaphney and Ruth Beach Corstaphney.

Linda's sons remember a mother who could deliver a sharp one-liner with perfect timing, who turned ordinary days into lasting stories, and who always made sure her family came first. Whether it was a long drive to see grandparents, a chaotic afternoon of practice, or one of those moments that only a family can truly appreciate, Linda was at the center of it all, keeping the house, the boys moving, and the laughter going.

She will be deeply missed and lovingly remembered.

Online condolences may be expressed by visiting www.johnmoakey.com.