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Russell "Russ" H. Geagel
Russell "Big Russ" H. Geagel, 70, died Sept. 8, 2004, at Providence Hospital,
Anchorage, of congestive heart failure. Memorial services were held Sept. 11,
2004, at the Kenai Lake Baptist Church in Cooper Landing, the Rev. James Hisel
of Sandia, Texas, officiating.
Geagel was born July 13, 1934, in
Denver. He lived in Colorado for 31 years. After serving in the U.S. Army, he
worked for Martin-Marietta and Dow Chemical. His adventuresome spirit led him to
Alaska in 1965. While in Anchorage he worked as a long-haul truck driver in the
aftermath of the Good Friday 1964 earthquake, and worked at the Alaska Native
Medical Center, eventually as building and grounds supervisor.
He moved to Seldovia in 1975,
where he worked as facilities manager for the Kasitsna Bay Research Lab for the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Alaska
Fairbanks. He retired in 1995. He and his wife were snowbirds in Texas for six
years. While in Texas, he used his building skills to help the local church with
many projects. He returned to living full-time in Seldovia last year.
His family and friends remember
him as an outdoorsman. He was a pilot, recreational boater, hunter and fisherman
who loved Alaska. He could fix anything and had just finished building a home in
Seldovia in June. His family said, "He loved the Lord and his skills will surely
be put to good use in Heaven."
Geagel is survived by his wife of
21 years, Linda; his children, Lynn Sutton, Russell Lee Geagel, Pam Blikstad,
Michael Geagel, Kim McCaulou, Irene Hoffman, Ilene Hoffman, Ronene Hoffman, Ron
Hoffman and Shad Wells; his sister, Helen Bokan, of Lafayette, Colo.; his
nephew, Mike Bokan, of Boise, Idaho; 19 grandchildren and two
great-grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, donations are
requested for the Education Building Fund, First Baptist Church, Sandia, Texas
78383.
Source: Homer News, 16 September 2004 |
