Obituary for Robert K. Russell
On a beautiful, sunny October day, the 22nd, God extended his hand to Robert Russell and said " Ok Bobbie, You have enjoyed your family on earth for 94 years. Now it's time for you to come with me and join our family here." And without pain or suffering, Bob's transition from this life into his eternal life flowed smoothly and peacefully.
Sometimes Bob kiddingly liked to refer to himself as "Mrs. Russell's little boy Bobbie." He was born on September 26, 1928 in Harvey, Illinois, a suburb just south of Chicago, where he grew up and went to school. At the "ripe" age of 17 1/2, he married his high school sweetheart, Marion Partridge, on the night of their senior prom. About a year and a quarter later Bob and Marion experienced the joy of their first child entering onto life's stage. He also was named Bob. Then came Kay five years later and Lisa seven years after that.
Loving his family as he did, Bob always sought to do well by them. He, therefore, was a perpetual student and a voracious reader. He was always learning to better himself. His interests and pursuits were numerous, among which included health, exercise, anti-drug use, anti-smoking, anti-drinking, and continuous studying and learning. For a while he was a Physical Therapist and a Dental Technician. At the young age 20, he was a Keynote Speaker at a Nutrilite Supplement Convention. He sold the Encyclopedia Britannica and developed his own selling technique in order to increase his sales enormously. He developed an anti-drug organization, National Institute for Truth - Illicit Drug Elimination Association (NIFT-IDEA). He also studied Chiropractic which enabled him to meet and befriend B.J Palmer, whose father was the developer of Chiropractic, and B.J. himself worked to have Chiropractic recognized and accepted by the medical community. Bob's venture into food supplements prompted him to develop his own protein supplement.
And this fact affords the opportunity to relate an interesting story about him: Bob was meeting with some nutritionists at the University of Chicago who were helping to develop the formulation for his protein supplement product. After the meeting he was walking down the hall to exit the building when he noticed a sign with Albert Einstein's name on it. Is this THE Albert Einstein, he wondered? So Bob, being Bob, unobtrusively entered the room and sat down in the back. After the lecture was over, everyone was congratulating Einstein on his brilliant thoughts. When the room was nearly cleared, Bob went up to Einstein to congratulate him also. In his own "brilliance", Bob began to speak and said the following: "Thda..., Thda..., Da..., Thda..., Uhh...," sputtering such illegible sounds. Now, anyone who knew Bob has NEVER found him to be speechless. Upon Bob's "brilliant" utterances, Einstein looked at him and asked if he was alright. All Bob could say was, "I... I..., I..., I don't know what to say. I feel so stupid." With a twinkle in his eyes Einstein said, "No, you are not stupid, you are merely ignorant." Forming a circle with both hands Einstein said, "If this circle represents the world's knowledge, my knowledge is but a mere speck in this circle. Your ignorance is an indication of your need to learn and know."
Bob went home that night and pondered Einstein's wisdom. He then took a large piece of paper and drew a circle calling it the world's knowledge and put a speck in it calling the speck Einstein's knowledge. He then drew a second circle calling it EINSTEIN'S knowledge and put a speck in it calling that speck MY knowledge.
That very brief encountering with Einstein impacted the remainder of Bob's life. Now, he always knew that we are all ignorant of so many things. No one knows everything about everything, that's impossible. We know a lot about a few things, a little about many things, and nothing about most things. But Einstein's wise words hit Bob's understanding of our own ignorance with such incredible force. He truly recognized the need to study, understand, and correctly apply our knowledge. This became his driving force, to LEARN!
In the course of his life, Bob earned two Doctorate degrees, thus his nickname, "Dr. Bob." His first Ph. D. is in Psychology and his second doctorate degree is a Juris Doctorate in Law. He worked most of his life for the Grand Trunk Railroad in various capacities which allowed him the time to - what else, study! And this focused study is what allowed him to earn his two Ph D's. The railroad's flexibility of hours afforded him that opportunity.
The flexibility of hours also allowed Bob to be with his beloved wife, Marion when she developed breast cancer. He could work nights while she slept, and then be with her during the day if she needed him. His initial goal was to run as President of the Yardmaster's Union for the entire country which is why he studied Law, a need to know about contracts. However, when Marion got breast cancer everything was put aside and there was very little vigor in his run for the Yardmaster's Presidency. Sadly, Marion passed away about five years later after 36 years of marriage.
Two years later Bob and Laura met and were married in the Southern most courthouse in the country in Key West. That was in 1984 on Valentine's Day and they have been happily married for 38 years.
Bob is survived by his wife, Laura (Nee' Wrzesinski); his daughters, Kay Lovrich and Lisa (Doug) Misch; 12 grandchildren, Dylan, Elizabeth, Kathryn, Brittany, Jason, Brett, Tara, Erin, Paul, Matt, Zach, and Hannah; 20 great grandchildren and 2 great great grandchildren with one more on the way. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews.
Bob is preceded in death by his first wife, Marion; his son, Bob; his mother, Gertrude Hoffman; his father, Alton Russell; his grandparents, Marie and Hugo Knauer; as well as an aunt, uncle and cousins.
Bob's reason for being has always been to LEARN. His license plate is, 2Learn2. He leaves us with his wise thought: "From other I have learned, With others I have shared."
Due to the upcoming holidays and winter weather, a celebration of life will be held sometime in the spring. This will probably occur in April. Future notification will be provided.
Arrangements entrusted to the Baxter Funeral and Cremation Service, 269-788-9800. www.baxterfuneral.com
Sometimes Bob kiddingly liked to refer to himself as "Mrs. Russell's little boy Bobbie." He was born on September 26, 1928 in Harvey, Illinois, a suburb just south of Chicago, where he grew up and went to school. At the "ripe" age of 17 1/2, he married his high school sweetheart, Marion Partridge, on the night of their senior prom. About a year and a quarter later Bob and Marion experienced the joy of their first child entering onto life's stage. He also was named Bob. Then came Kay five years later and Lisa seven years after that.
Loving his family as he did, Bob always sought to do well by them. He, therefore, was a perpetual student and a voracious reader. He was always learning to better himself. His interests and pursuits were numerous, among which included health, exercise, anti-drug use, anti-smoking, anti-drinking, and continuous studying and learning. For a while he was a Physical Therapist and a Dental Technician. At the young age 20, he was a Keynote Speaker at a Nutrilite Supplement Convention. He sold the Encyclopedia Britannica and developed his own selling technique in order to increase his sales enormously. He developed an anti-drug organization, National Institute for Truth - Illicit Drug Elimination Association (NIFT-IDEA). He also studied Chiropractic which enabled him to meet and befriend B.J Palmer, whose father was the developer of Chiropractic, and B.J. himself worked to have Chiropractic recognized and accepted by the medical community. Bob's venture into food supplements prompted him to develop his own protein supplement.
And this fact affords the opportunity to relate an interesting story about him: Bob was meeting with some nutritionists at the University of Chicago who were helping to develop the formulation for his protein supplement product. After the meeting he was walking down the hall to exit the building when he noticed a sign with Albert Einstein's name on it. Is this THE Albert Einstein, he wondered? So Bob, being Bob, unobtrusively entered the room and sat down in the back. After the lecture was over, everyone was congratulating Einstein on his brilliant thoughts. When the room was nearly cleared, Bob went up to Einstein to congratulate him also. In his own "brilliance", Bob began to speak and said the following: "Thda..., Thda..., Da..., Thda..., Uhh...," sputtering such illegible sounds. Now, anyone who knew Bob has NEVER found him to be speechless. Upon Bob's "brilliant" utterances, Einstein looked at him and asked if he was alright. All Bob could say was, "I... I..., I..., I don't know what to say. I feel so stupid." With a twinkle in his eyes Einstein said, "No, you are not stupid, you are merely ignorant." Forming a circle with both hands Einstein said, "If this circle represents the world's knowledge, my knowledge is but a mere speck in this circle. Your ignorance is an indication of your need to learn and know."
Bob went home that night and pondered Einstein's wisdom. He then took a large piece of paper and drew a circle calling it the world's knowledge and put a speck in it calling the speck Einstein's knowledge. He then drew a second circle calling it EINSTEIN'S knowledge and put a speck in it calling that speck MY knowledge.
That very brief encountering with Einstein impacted the remainder of Bob's life. Now, he always knew that we are all ignorant of so many things. No one knows everything about everything, that's impossible. We know a lot about a few things, a little about many things, and nothing about most things. But Einstein's wise words hit Bob's understanding of our own ignorance with such incredible force. He truly recognized the need to study, understand, and correctly apply our knowledge. This became his driving force, to LEARN!
In the course of his life, Bob earned two Doctorate degrees, thus his nickname, "Dr. Bob." His first Ph. D. is in Psychology and his second doctorate degree is a Juris Doctorate in Law. He worked most of his life for the Grand Trunk Railroad in various capacities which allowed him the time to - what else, study! And this focused study is what allowed him to earn his two Ph D's. The railroad's flexibility of hours afforded him that opportunity.
The flexibility of hours also allowed Bob to be with his beloved wife, Marion when she developed breast cancer. He could work nights while she slept, and then be with her during the day if she needed him. His initial goal was to run as President of the Yardmaster's Union for the entire country which is why he studied Law, a need to know about contracts. However, when Marion got breast cancer everything was put aside and there was very little vigor in his run for the Yardmaster's Presidency. Sadly, Marion passed away about five years later after 36 years of marriage.
Two years later Bob and Laura met and were married in the Southern most courthouse in the country in Key West. That was in 1984 on Valentine's Day and they have been happily married for 38 years.
Bob is survived by his wife, Laura (Nee' Wrzesinski); his daughters, Kay Lovrich and Lisa (Doug) Misch; 12 grandchildren, Dylan, Elizabeth, Kathryn, Brittany, Jason, Brett, Tara, Erin, Paul, Matt, Zach, and Hannah; 20 great grandchildren and 2 great great grandchildren with one more on the way. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews.
Bob is preceded in death by his first wife, Marion; his son, Bob; his mother, Gertrude Hoffman; his father, Alton Russell; his grandparents, Marie and Hugo Knauer; as well as an aunt, uncle and cousins.
Bob's reason for being has always been to LEARN. His license plate is, 2Learn2. He leaves us with his wise thought: "From other I have learned, With others I have shared."
Due to the upcoming holidays and winter weather, a celebration of life will be held sometime in the spring. This will probably occur in April. Future notification will be provided.
Arrangements entrusted to the Baxter Funeral and Cremation Service, 269-788-9800. www.baxterfuneral.com