I met Anne while teaching at The Howard School and soon had the pleasure of meeting Russ.  I've known Russ for about 40 years and got to know a man of many layers and interests.  We became friends in spite of his jokes.  He would start with "have I told you the one about......" and would continue to tell the joke, followed by another until you laughed. Some of his interests were #1 family, science fiction, camping, old friends, hiking, mysteries, dancing, especially polkas, playing bridge, etc.  Probably he's most noted for being super husband, dad, and Big Daddy.  OH! and his cooking! That man could cook! and make you feel so special with the incredible meals he served up. I would text him with a cooking question, and he was on it. 

The last time I talked to Russ was a surprise, he seldom called and I was afraid of bad news..  He started with "" Did you hear about..." and went on to say " Stehanie has gotten herself engaged to TWO men at the SAME time!" I asked who Stephanie was and he said "YOU know, Stephanie Plum!  She is engaged to BOTH Ranger and Morelli!" Cracked me up and made my day.

Russ was a thoughtful man to so many. I would drive to Atlanta to go off on an adventure with Anne. She was often not there when I arrived. Russ would notice how stiff and road weary I was after 6 hours of driving and take me to a nearby trail to walk off the road kinks. So many acts of kindness.  I'm going to miss Mr. Russ.

Celebration of Life for Russ Echols February 27, 2025

Tributes from Evan Lindsay and John Dunn

I came to know Anne and Russ through Nancy’s friendship with Susan Hollingshead, one of the “Emory girls”. It took a while for me to be integrated into the circle of friendship since most of Nancy’s friends were trying to decide if I was a keeper. Thankfully, I passed the test.

Early memories of Russ were formed at fun parties, dinners and other get togethers. When Anne and Russ had Melissa and then Nancy and I had Julia we formed a little babysitting coop where we would alternate Friday nights with one couple hosting the girls and the other couple having a date night out and vice versa. I believe Julia and Melissa became early best friends because of that arrangement. It was wonderful for all of us.

Although I knew Russ for a long time, I found him to be a hard person to really know. I certainly knew the consummate host, the jokester and the storyteller. I found Russ to be a private person, at least to me. Perhaps the most interaction I had with Russ was after his accident on the ladder and his subsequent surgical repair. There was a period during his recovery when Russ was unable to drive but was doing some accountancy consulting with a company near Northside Hospital. Anne was able to drop him off in the morning but was unable to pick him up in the afternoon because of her teaching responsibilities. I picked him up for several days and had great conversations with him about his work, his family and his views on life. I will always treasure those times with Russ and the opportunity that I had to get to know him better, especially now.

Russ was a kind person who loved his family and his friends immensely. He expressed that kindness through hosting, cooking and finding humor in many situations. I respect him a great deal and will miss his smile most of all.

And now, a few words from our friend, John Dunn. As many of you know, John has been at Emory Hospital for the past month undergoing a bone marrow transplant. He is improving daily with constant love and support from Patti. I spoke with John for about 30 minutes this morning, and he wanted me to share some of his memories of Russ with you all.

John, Russ and sometimes Marco would go with the Emory girls for their trips to the beach and various other destinations. John says that Russ was the “meal Nazi”. He would meticulously plan all of the meals, cook them, and show one or two friends, who happen to be near the kitchen, how to build their plates. Then he’d instruct these friends to show the others what to do. This applied to his fabulous Thanksgiving meals as well. Russ wanted everyone to know what side ingredients went with what dishes, nuts with this dish, feta with that, etc. He wanted everyone to enjoy to the fullest the meals that he had spent hours preparing. John told me that he thinks Russ got pure joy from the process of cooking, the chopping, the precise measurements and so on.

John also recounted a story where he mentioned the Cajun cook, Justin Wilson, and Russ’s face lit up and then Russ proceeded to tell him all about Justin and his approach to cooking and humor.

John and I think that Russ showed his love to his friends through his gift of cooking fabulous meals. What better way to express love, kindness and genuine humanity.

I was 13 when my father was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. We had a family conversation about what our bucket list items were. My brothers both said they were good but I wanted my dad to pin my Eagle medal in my scout uniform. 

The scoutmaster at my troop didn't believe in 13 year old eagle Scouts. He thought you should have more maturity. I was devastated, my father had weeks to live. I decided I would start my own troop, and called my friends (including Jarett) who were not in Scouts at the time. 

Without hesitation, Russ agreed to be one of the adult leaders. The next day I went to my troop meeting to resign as patrol leader. What I didn't know was that there had been a flurry of phone calls back and forth all day. My scoutmaster backed down and let me complete the award.

Because Russ was willing to go the extra mile for me I was able to say goodbye to my father. He was unable to speak but  he pinned the award on my shirt 13 hours before he died.

Thank you.