Russell was born in Astoria New York to Mary “Mae” & Patrick Callahan on April 11, 1934. He grew up in Woodside Queens New York and went to school at William Cullen Bryant High School in Woodside New York. He married Elrita Edebohls on June 6th,1954 in Woodside New York. After high school, he joined the Army where he was stationed in Stuttgart Germany working in the Signal Corps during the early years of what would become the Cold War. After completing his service in the Army, Russell returned home and worked for a short time with Liggett & Myers before starting his career as an engineer for Sperry Rand. He rose through the ranks to become a district manager at the company that became Unisys. He worked for thirty years at locations across New York, Massachusetts in Connecticut. He retired from the company now known as Unisys. Russell had an adventurous life raising his four children, owning & running the Clinton Motel, creating & operating his own sheep farm, living in retirement in Indian Rocks Beach Florida and in Old Saybrook Connecticut. He was generous to a fault and did not mix words in sharing what he believed in.
Russell is preceded in death by his two brothers Kenneth & Warren Callahan and sister Edna Parker.
Russell is survived by wife Elrita; their children Debbie & Richard Dombroski, Lori & Frank Hird, William & Melanie Callahan, and John & Denise Callahan; their grandchildren Krista & Kevin Taylor, Danielle & Sean Carroll, Carly & Stephen Clearwater, Megan & Joshua Ierna, Briana Callahan, Michael Callahan, Benjamin Callahan, Emily Callahan, Jacob Callahan & Mary Callahan; their great grandchildren Brody Taylor, Jack Taylor and Tucker Clearwater.
Calling hours will be held in the Swan Funeral Home, 80 E. Main St., Clinton, CT on Thursday, June 16th from 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM with a service at 12:00 PM. Burial with full Military Honors will follow in Beaver Brook Cemetery, Clinton, CT.
A special thanks to the staff at Evergreen Woods Health Center for taking such good care of Russell.
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