To all those longtime friends of Russell on the West Coast and his newfound friends on the East Coast, we are comforted to know of the abundant blessings of friendship that Russ experienced during his lifetime. It is comforting to learn of the many wonderful lives that were touched by Russell. Russ and I stayed in contact regularly over the years; we really enjoyed having him close-by for the past couple of years. I believe God wanted Russell to experience in-person, the present love of family again, after living across the country for most of his life. While he was here in Florida, we got together regularly for outings, dinners, casual visits and chats, and of course all the holiday gatherings. Along with those came loads of smiles and hugs, and I know he felt loved and enjoyed being physically present to spend time with his family. May God bless each you who were a part of Russell's life and may God help us all to remember the blessings and good memories that we each have from our individual and shared connections with our brother in Christ, Russell Gregg Merrill.

Romans 8:38-39- "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."