of Marshall, AR
May 30, 1933 - January 24, 2016
Othelene (Summerhill) Russell, 82, of Marshall, Arkansas, died January 24, 2016, in her home. Othelene, the first child of seven born to Margaret Elizabeth Ann (Waltman) Summerhill and Horace Reuben (H.R.) Summerhill, was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, on May 30, 1933. On September 2, 1950, she married the love of her life, Comer Wiley Russell, Jr., in the First Baptist Church of Leslie, Arkansas, and began the life of a military wife. In 1972, they retired to Marshall, Arkansas, where she began the role of a pastor's wife when he accepted the call of New Hopewell Baptist Church.
She was a charter member of the Ladies Auxiliary of VFW post 3252 in Marshall and was a member of the Searcy County Fair Board for many years, serving as a judge and supervising 4-H Fundraisers, and she also served on the Searcy County Jim G. Ferguson Library Board. Serving as chair of the Searcy County American Cancer Society in the 1970s and '80s, she is most remembered for organizing the annual Hee-Haw fundraiser. She also organized and presided over an annual Horton/Russell family reunion held the weekend of Leslie Homecoming. Many came as much to sample her cooking as to learn about their ancestors.
Othelene spent her early youth on military bases in Kansas, but most of her youth was spent in Leslie, Arkansas, which she travelled to alone on a train at age four to live with her grandparents while her family changed postings. Leslie was also home during the war years while her father was a P.O.W. in Germany. Marrying in 1950, she spent her first year of married life as a senior in Leslie High School while her husband was stationed at Barksdale AFB near Shreveport, Louisiana, having promised her father to complete high school. As a military wife, she toured the South and England with sojourns in Marshall and Conway when her husband was posted to Africa and South Korea.
She held three paying jobs in her life: Salesclerk in Little Rock, Arkansas, one summer while in high school, Census worker for the 1980, 1990, and 2000 Census, and Election Poll Worker, where she worked almost every election from 1976 to 2010. In her census work, she drove many back roads that could only have been designed by someone following a blind cow off a mountain.
She loved butterflies, books, crossword puzzles, crafts, and her friends and family. She enjoyed her book club (Coffee Cup) and the fellowship she shared there. A letter writer, she kept up a massive correspondence with people she had met at various points in her life.
She is survived by her son Charles Russell and wife Karen of McAlester, Oklahoma, and grandsons Robert Russell of Ada, Oklahoma, and James and Bryan Russell of McAlester, Oklahoma; her son George Russell and wife Chang-Hee of Jefferson City, Missouri, granddaughter Tessa (Russell) Baughman and husband Andrew of Northville, Michigan, and grandson Andrew Russell of Los Angeles, California; her daughter Rebecca (Russell) Baird and husband Eddie of Mountain View, Arkansas, granddaughters Brandi (Baird) Stafford and husband Lane of Maumelle, Arkansas, and Shelley (Baird) Todd and husband Keith of Hot Springs, Arkansas, and grandsons Weldon and Bryce Baird of Mountain View; and her son David Russell of San Jose, California. She is also survived by her great-grandchildren Jackson and Jordan Stafford and Alexander Baughman.
She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, three siblings (Phyllis Summerhill McKuen, Linda Summerhill Badger, and Floyd Allen Summerhill), and a host of relatives and friends who shaped her life. Funeral services will be at Roller-Coffman Funeral Home in Marshall on Sunday, January 31, 2016, at 2:00 p.m. with visitation from 1:00 to 2:00. Following the ceremony, she will be interred at Canaan Cemetery.
So sorry to hear about Othelene passing away.She was a sweet person that will be greatly missed.We send you all our deepest sympathy,and prayers.
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of your Mom. I always enjoyed our family gatherings and her jolly laugh. I am keeping the family in my prayers.
Othelene and Comer were a real joy. Their family was truly a blessing. We're thinking about all of you.
My thoughts and ;prayers are with each one of you during this difficult time.
Always enjoyed visiting with Othelene and Comer. I know you are missing her terribly.
such a sweet wonder ful lady glad I chance to get acquainted with her a bit. prayers to the family.
So sorry to hear about Ms. Russell. We met her thru the fair. She was a wonderful sweet lady that will certainly be missed.