Lucy Lopez Russell

Lucy Lopez Russell, 84 years 11 months, was residing with other golden girls at Starlight Homes in San Antonio for the last three months. After a long struggle with Alzheimer's and Dementia, Lucy has been set free, to be with her family in Heaven.

As a young teenager and adult, Lucy had worked as a farm hand. She picked cotton with her siblings in the fields of Texas and would travel to Northern states when work was needed. Lucy did not enjoy working in the fields. She suffered from headaches when she was in the sun for too long. Then Lucy eventually moved to a job inside a canning factory, which she enjoyed but wasn't paid very much. The pay was enough however for her to save up enough money for her great adventure.

Lucy saved up a few thousand dollars and moved to Austin to become a hair stylist. She finished her training in the minimum amount of time that was legally possible. She was good at her work. She began then to make bigger goals. Every goal she made, she accomplished. This was mainly due to having excellent skills at her new career, but also a bit of luck. Lucy rented a station at a very trendy salon, right out of beauty school. She knew that she would need great clients to make her dreams come true, but she was rewarded for her boldness, beyond her beliefs. Lucy soon had very prominent political clients, such as Liz Carpenter, and Marialice Shivers.

Those women encouraged their friends to come to Lucy. These pioneers of the women's movement, as well as the dozens of loyal customers that followed, supported Lucy's goals to buy a car and then a house. They also followed Lucy when she moved to a new salon where the rent was much cheaper. Lucy was excellent at money management. Lucy considered hard work and discipline the keys to success. She was also very sure that her luck was always good luck.

Lucy was a devout Catholic and loved going to mass at St. Austin's Church in Austin, Texas. She most loved that the masses were full of young people. She would remind her son that the university was right next door. She was also a fan of the news and reality television. She loved knowing what was going in the world and was happy to inform other people of current events. She considered current events a talking point that everyone could relate to.

Lucy will be missed and loved by all who got the opportunity to know her. The Starlight Home was a wonderful place for Lucy. It was full of spirited ladies and the owners lived in the house with their young daughter and two small dogs. Lucy believed she was working there, as a hairdresser. During each visit, with family, for the first few months, she would discuss her son, who in her mind was still very young, and how she needed to go see him.

Lucy's last message to the world was that time moves very quickly. She had a few moments of clarity in her final days and her favorite memory exemplified her personality. It was of a young man that she had shared a romance with when she had just moved to Austin. His name was Cope, she recalled. He was a pilot and she thought he was the most handsome man she had ever seen and even flew to California to see him. Lucy's goals would not be deterred however, so she returned to Austin to complete what she had started.

Lucy was married for a short time and had one child from that relationship. She is survived by her son, Edward Russell; sister, Elida Lopez; brother, Jose Lopez; nieces, Mary Helen Valdez, Inelda Natek, Gloria Arreola, and Kelly Laosa; nephews, Lalo Valdez, Romeiro Valdez, John Valdez, Duffy Lopez, John Lopez, and Gilbert Trevino and sister-in-law, Lucia Lopez.

Visitation will be held at 11:00 am on Saturday, August 12, 2017 at St. Austin Catholic Church, with the Funeral Mass to begin at 12:00 pm with Reverend Charles Kullman officiating. Interment will follow at Assumption Cemetery.