Donald Wayne Russell, “Russ,” 80, passed away on March 25, 2024 at his home in Lexington, Va., after three years of in-home hospice care for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Russ was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Oct. 15, 1943, to parents Douglas Hugh Russell and Ella Harris Russell. He attended The University of Pennsylvania, then transferred to University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, where he studied English, politics, philosophy, and economics, graduating in 1967.
Russ relocated permanently to the United States in 1974, living in Greenwich, Conn., Marblehead, Mass., Newburyport, Mass., then Bristol, becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1989. He helped develop the usage and potential for carbon fiber for Union Carbide (‘74-‘78), founded and managed Sovereign Yachts, Stamford, Conn., with his partner (‘78-‘85).
Eventually Russ retired to his family’s summer home in Bristol, where he took care of his aging parents, and the farm, and played a lot of golf (wintering first in Southern Pines, N.C., then Green Valley, Ariz.). He met his second wife, Sarah Gayle Carter, in 2008. They lived together at the farm in Maine, on Two Century Farm, in his beloved “Barn,” until moving to Lexington, Va., in 2014.
Russ was many things: a gifted athlete at any sport he took up – cricket, soccer, shooting, rugby, downhill skiing, ice hockey, tennis, sailing, and golf. He had a brilliant mind, and was a lifelong learner, an engaging raconteur, a master of history in general, and military history in particular. A lover of travel, art, dogs, good books, good food, good company, and a good laugh. He was a proud father, a natural teacher, a diligent steward of The Farm in Maine, a charismatic leader and companion who knew at least a little, and often a lot, about an astonishing range of subjects.
He is survived by his wife, Sarah; children, Courtney Samantha Russell and Trevor Alexander Russell; grandson, Teo Pickering; brothers, Douglas Floyd Russell, Byron Dale Russell; and his dog, Mojo.
There will be a small, private reception at his home in Lexington. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Connections Plus, Healthcare + Hospice, 315 Myers St., Lexington, VA 24450.
