Marlene Russ Harmon

Virginia Beach - Marlene Dietrich Russ Harmon died March 3, 2010, at Sentara Leigh Hospital in Norfolk after a brief illness. She was born September 25, 1933 to Bernice Allen Russ and Nancy Lucille Pigott in Ash, North Carolina.

The wife of a military service man, she was a homemaker who enjoyed several hobbies during her life including painting, hat making, and cake decorating. She loved to shop at thrift stores and lived for the thrill of a good find. She was an accomplished seamstress and an avid reader. She loved God and her family and was an active member of her church and community.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 57 years, Paul N. Harmon; her parents; and a brother, Rodney A. Russ, formerly of Marianna, Florida.

She is survived by her siblings, Shirley Gore of Wilmington, NC, and Lowell Russ of Panama City, FL; her loving daughters, Teresa Ingerson and husband Tom Patton of Virginia Beach, Abbe Haymaker and her husband Wayne of Chesapeake; and grandchildren, Russell Ingerson of Ahoskie, NC, Meredith Hoffler of Portsmouth, Natalie Hoffler of Virginia Beach, Abbe Ingerson of Richmond and Caroline Haymaker of Chesapeake; as well as nieces and nephews around the country.

The family will receive friends on Sunday, March 7 at Smith and Williams Funeral Home, 4889 Princess Anne Road, Virginia Beach, from 2 to 4 p.m. A funeral service will be held Monday, March 8 at Virginia Heights Baptist Church, 1251 Kempsville Road, Norfolk, at 12 noon, with a viewing one half hour prior. Burial will follow at Albert G. Horton Jr. Memorial Veterans Cemetery in Suffolk. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial donations to Virginia Heights Baptist Church, The Gideons or a charity of one's choice. Please share your love and condolences with the family at www.smithandwilliamskempsville.com.