OBITUARY OF RUSSELL LEE ARMSTRONG

Russell Lee Armstrong was born in Longmont Colorado on May 27th, 1933, to Roy Christie and Rowena Viola Armstrong. The family moved from Longmont to Loveland, CO, then to California to farm cotton, and then Richland, WA. Where Roy’s sister said there were jobs.

Russ graduated from Columbia High, now Richland High, in 1953. He enlisted in the Airforce for a four-year stint after graduation, where he learned the trade of office machine repair. From 1957-1959, he attended Perry Trade School in Yakima, WA where he studied industrial electronics. He was employed at the Hanford site by General Electric for six years and then Battelle Northwest for thirty years.

He married Jane Cone of Colonial Heights, Virginia on Sept 11th, 1954. They were married seventy-one years. They had two children, Linda Louise (Lettau) and Laura Jane (Murphy). They have five grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

Russ was a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ from his teenage years, belonged to Richland Baptist Church sing 1961, he served in several areas of church life over the years.

He was member of Ye Olde Car Club and Three Rivers Model T-Club for many years.

Russ was a multi-talented man, he built the state-of-the-art home they lived in for sixty-five years, employing many features that were new ideas at the time, now standard. He was interested in antique cars, owning a 1926 Star Coupe, 1924 Star Touring, 1927 Model-T, and a 1937 Packard Sedan. They collected vintage clothing and enjoyed dressing the part for tours and other old car gatherings.

He loved cars and, on the side, he repaired VW and Volvo engines, Built, sold and drove dune buggies, owned a sailboat for several years, taking it to the San Juan’s several times, owned Arab horses which his daughters showed in competition. Linda’s horse was top horse in the state in 1977, and Laura’s was top gelding in the seventeen and under category in 1977. He also enjoyed tennis, which he played until he was eighty-four, loved fishing and hunting, the family liked to camp in the mountains and on the Oregon Coast. After the children were gone form home, he and Jane liked to travel in the United States. Russ loved to drive and Jane liked to ride.

He also was interested in photography. There are a million pictures of Jane and not so many of Russ. Family dinners show an empty chair where he would sit.

He was preceded in death by his parents and four siblings.