Malcolm "Bud" Russell

Malcolm "Bud" Lawrence Russell, 76, beloved father, grandfather and brother, died June 11, 2012, at his home in his recliner while watching his favorite team, the Boston Red Sox. He was born March 3, 1936, in Rutland, Vermont, the son of Lawrence Russell and Eunice Blanchard Russell. He grew up in Springfield, Vermont, where he learned to hunt and fish and became an accomplished athlete. In 1954, he was the Vermont state high school javelin champion, member of the Springfield High School state baseball championship team and a 4-sport varsity letterman. He graduated from University of Vermont in 1958, with a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering. While at UVM, he set a Vermont collegiate javelin throwing record and won a New England collegiate javelin throwing championship. In 1993, he was inducted into UVM's Athletic Hall of Fame. Following his graduation from UVM, he began working at the S1C USS Tullibee prototype power plant in Connecticut and bought a 1959 convertible Corvette, which he drove excessively fast, terrorizing local law enforcement. That changed after he met Kathryn (Kacia) Tatro, who became his wife and traveling companion on December 19, 1959. They traded the Corvette for a Ford Falcon station wagon (much to the later dismay of his teenage children). After Bud completed his service with the U.S. Air Force in 1960, Bud and Kacia moved to Idaho Falls in 1960, where he was employed as an engineer at the SL1 Stationary Low-Power Plant #1 at the Idaho Nuclear Engineering Laboratory. He subsequently became a member of the clean-up and accident investigation team when SL1 experienced a nuclear accident in 1961. Bud and Kacia, and their baby daughter, Barbara, returned to New England, where a second daughter, Faye, was born. The allure of the Rocky Mountains and abundant elk and trout fishing were too much and the family returned to Idaho in 1963, when Bud began working for the Loss-of-Fluid Test (LOFT) facility at INEL. Bud worked on the LOFT program until its conclusion in the mid-1980s, often calling it the highlight of his career. After the LOFT program concluded, Bud was part of the Three-Mile-Island #2 Accident Investigation in Harrisburg, Pa. He later worked for EG&G Idaho on the Gas-Cooled New Production (Tritium) Reactor. He retired in 1995. An enthusiastic elk hunter and fly fisherman, Bud and his hunting partners would trek every October to their secret spot somewhere north of Salmon and spend two weeks hunting. Bud taught all five of his children to fish, bowl and play baseball, softball and basketball. The family's regular outings included camping trips in Idaho and Montana and "Sunday drives" which often involved fishing, looking for arrowheads or trying to find the original Oregon Trail. Bud coached both of his sons' baseball teams from Little League years up through Babe Ruth. An avid bowler, he participated for nearly 20 years in a Tuesday Night mixed league at Bowl-ero with his wife and competed in pro-am tournaments with his children. He and Kacia also played in a bridge league for more than 20 years. His love for sports continued into his retirement, when he took up throwing the javelin again. He participated in United States Track and Field Master's-level competitions, winning a national javelin-throwing championship in 2001. In addition, he and Kacia traveled around the United States to compete in track meets and visit their children in Oregon, Michigan, and Alabama, and their parents and siblings in Florida, Vermont, and Connecticut. Bud and Kacia observed their 50th wedding anniversary in 2009. Kacia succumbed to lung cancer on March 19, 2010. In the last two years, Bud pursued a number of interesting passions: he had a 1994 Ford Thunderbird Supercoupe restored; communicated with officials in Fukishima, Japan, on the causes and recovery of the nuclear reactor accident there; became a prolific writer of letters to the editor of the Post-Register, discovered Facebook and reconnected with classmates and friends from long ago and made several new friends. Surviving to miss Bud are his five children: Barbara Russell and Faye Whitenack (Michael), both of Salem, Ore.; Marie Lee (Krieg) of Kalamazoo, Mich.; Dan Russell (Cecilia) of Pelham, Ala.; and Glenn Russell of Pocatello; five grandsons, Ben and Jarret Whitenack of Salem, Ore.; Malcolm Lawrence Russell II and Graham Russell of Pelham; Ala.; and Michael Lee of Kalamazoo, Mich.; a brother, Addison (Judy) Russell of Darby, Mont.; a sister, Samantha Britt of Rutland, Vt.; and many nephews and nieces. In addition, he leaves behind his hunting buddies and dear friends Harold Rau and Thomas Murphy, both of Idaho Falls. He was preceded in death by his wife, Kacia; and his parents. In accordance with his wishes, his remains will be cremated. Visitation with his family will be from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Friday at Wood Funeral Home, 237 N. Ridge Avenue. Friends are invited to a Celebration of Life to be held at the family home Saturday from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Bud's name be made to the Idaho State University Track and Field program (to the attention of Dave Nielsen) or the ISU Cross Country program (to the attention of Brian Janssen), Idaho State University, 921 S. 8th Ave., Campus Box 8173, Pocatello, ID 83209.