Kathryn "Kacia" Russell

KACIA RUSSELL Holding the hand of her first-born grandson and surrounded by loved ones, Kathryn Elaine "Kacia" (Tatro) Russell died March 19, 2010, at her home in Idaho Falls, Idaho, after a hard-fought battle with cancer. Kacia was born November 30, 1934, at her parents' home in Fort Dummer in Brattleboro, Vermont, the third of five children born to Kenneth and Mary Emma (Minnie) Juscen Tatro. She grew up in Brattleboro, graduating from Brattleboro High School in 1952. During high school she played women's basketball and trained to be an x-ray technician. After high school, she became the X-Ray Department Supervisor at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, and at the time was one of the youngest women in the nation to head a hospital radiology department. She left Brattleboro and worked as an x-ray technician in New York City and Boston. Kacia met Malcolm (Bud) Russell in the spring of 1959 and they were married December 19, 1959, in St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Brattleboro. They lived briefly in New Windsor, Connecticut, before moving to Idaho Falls permanently in 1962. They had five children, Barbara, Faye, Marie, Daniel and Glenn. They celebrated 50 years of marriage on December 19, 2009. Kacia was an excellent bowler and a fixture at Bowl-ero Lanes for more than two decades. She participated in the Tuesday Night Mixed League and Wednesday Night Women's League, winning the IFBA Women's Scratch City Championship in 1973. Kacia and Bud were also accomplished bridge partners, participating in the Ruff and Sluff Bridge Marathon Club. Kacia enjoyed being involved in her children's activities. She instilled the basics of baseball to a couple dozen squirming five- and six-year-old boys as the patient coach of her sons' T-ball teams. Taught to fish with nightcrawlers by her father, she asserted that it was her duty as a mother to always catch the biggest and/or most fish in order to show her children, and husband, how it was done. She attended all her children's sporting and school events, and was a well-known Track Mom at Idaho State University where both Daniel and Glenn were track team members. Many may not have known Kacia, but they knew her carefully tended garden on the corner of Ninth St. and Linden Drive, which featured more than 50 rose bushes. People would often stop her as she worked in the garden and tell her how beautiful the roses were only to receive a bouquet in return. After her children were grown, she and Bud traveled around the country to visit them in Oregon, Alabama, Virginia, New York, California, and Michigan. They also made yearly treks to see her brothers, sisters, relatives and friends in Vermont and Florida. Along the way, Kacia and Bud became acquainted with many of the nation's casinos, where they contributed to the financial well-being of a number of Native American nations. They were regular visitors to Fort Hall Indian Casino where she found many friends who gave her support and compassion during her illness. She truly loved being a grandmother to her five grandsons, giving them with many wonderful memories of camping excursions, trips to Yellowstone and her being present at their sporting events. She reveled in spoiling them. Kacia had an enormous heart, taking many strangers under her wing, especially if they were fellow Vermont transplants. Her favorite places to be were with her grandchildren; walking the beaches in Oregon, North Carolina and Florida; camping in Montana; and visiting her family in Vermont and Florida. Kacia is survived by her husband, Bud, and her children, Barbara Russell and Glenn Russell, both of Pocatello, ID.; Faye (Michael) Whitenack of Salem, OR.; Marie (Krieg) Lee of Kalamazoo, MI; and Daniel (Cecilia) Russell of Pelham, AL; siblings, Barbara Baker of Northville, NY, and Barefoot Bay, FL; Kenneth (Marie) Tatro of Brattleboro; Joseph (Zenobia) Tatro of Sebastian, FL; Sally (Lee) Van Meter of Bloomfield, CT.; her five grandsons, Benjamin and Jarret Whitenack, Malcolm and Graham Russell, and Michael Lee; and many close friends in Idaho Falls and beyond. Among those who preceded her in death were her Baba (Polish grandmother), mother and father. Kacia's life was celebrated at a private family service. She will be deeply missed and carried in our hearts and memories forever. The family wishes to extend their deep gratitude to all of Kacia's dear friends near and far who have called, visited and cared for her during her illness and to Sandra Price who was with her, and our family, through it all. In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to Hands of Hope Hospice, 395 Kings Mill Circle, Idaho Falls, ID 83401 or the Idaho Food Bank, 555 South 1st Avenue, Pocatello, ID 83201. ---------------------------------------------------- Condolences received online: Adriana Browning You do not know me, but I just wanted to let you know how sorry I am to read about Kacia's passing. I have walked by Kacia's garden many times always admiring it - especially those beautiful roses. I aspire to have as wonderful of a garden as hers someday. My thoughts and prayers are with your family at this time. Jeff Payne My condolences and prayers go out to the Russell family in this time of sorrow.