My great uncle William “Bill” Henry Russell had served as a U.S. Air Force Pilot in World War II, the Korean War and in the Vietnam War. After over thirty years of service, William Russell achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. My great uncle passed away in Hampton Roads, Virginia In July 2009. Bill’s wife Lillian Newkirk passed away in 2014.

In October 2009 and in 2014, William and Lillian were buried in the Arlington National Cemetery where Presidents William Howard Taft and John Fitzgerald Kennedy are buried.