Obituary

RUSSELL, Della Barron died Aug. 30, 2009 in Seminole. She was born May 19, 1931 in Houston, TX, the daughter of Della K. Barron, a long time pharmacist and educator in Laredo and San Antonio, TX. She memorialized her mother's cattle-raising experiences close to Denton, TX, in the short story, "Granny and the One-Ton Pickup". Della grew up on the border in Laredo and graduated from Martin High School in 1948. At Laredo Junior College, she was elected Sports Queen and graduated as the 1951 class Valedictorian. Della graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts degree and became a member of Phi Beta Kappa. This fraternity required straight As for two years for admission. She received her Master's in School Admini-stration from Trinity University in San Antonio. She married Richard P. Russell on July 18, 1959 and taught elementary school in San Antonio and Salina, KS. Della was active in real estate as a Texas broker for over 30 years. She is survived by son James Russell (Peggy), Bedford, TX; and daughter, Leslie R. Lewis of Pinellas County; and two grandchildren, Alexandra Lewis and Luke Lewis. Also survived by half-sister Susan Lisk (Tom) of Raleigh, NC and their children Ashley and Corrie. Della was predeceased by her daughter, Ericka Lynn Russell in 1991, and husband Richard Peale Russell, an retired American Airlines pilot, in 2009. The family expresses gratitude to long-time caregivers Julia Wilmer, Lynn Smith, Kip Wilmer, Stacey, and M.A. Musselman. The family will receive friends at Anderson McQueen Funeral Home, 2201 Dr. MLK Jr. St, N, St. Petersburg, FL,, 727-822-2059 at 7-9 pm, Sept. 3, for viewing and an Irish wake. Burial at Dunnellon City Cemetery, Dunnellon, FL, 3 pm Friday, Sept. 4, next to her daughter, Ericka. Family requests, in lieu of flowers, donations are made to St. Jude Children's Hospital