IN LOVING MEMORY OF

Harold

Harold Russell Profile Photo

Russell

October 3, 1929 – October 14, 2025

Obituary

Harold Raymond "Pete" Russell, 96, passed away on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, at The TowneHouse Retirement Community. Pete was born on October 3, 1929, in Altoona, PA. His parents were Raymond and Virginia Russell. He was the 3rd of four sons born to them, and he acquired his nickname of "Baby Pete" after his mother's own nickname of Pete. That nickname became what he has been known as for 96 years. His family moved to York, PA when he was in junior high school and upon high school graduation, Pete entered military service in the United States Navy, where he served his country from 1948 to 1952. He met and married the love of his life, Jean, on February 4, 1953. Pete used the GI Bill to become an electrician. One of his early jobs sent him to the manufacturing facility of the York Peppermint Patty company where he so impressed the owner/founder with a suggestion on how to make the production line more efficient and, as a result, was offered a managerial position. That was the beginning of his entrance into the world of candy! Over the course of his working career, he worked for a number of candy manufacturers including Peter Paul, Cadbury and Leaf/Hershey. He rose through the ranks as a plant manager to the corporate level as a vice president—all without a college degree! His career necessitated a number of moves and besides Pennsylvania, he and Jean lived in Indiana, Connecticut, and Illinois. In retirement years, they lived in Florida and later Arizona before returning to Indiana in 2013. Pete enjoyed golfing, long-distance bike riding and wood carving in his retirement years and also wrote and published his memoir for his family. He had an engineer's mindset and could seemingly fix anything, and was called upon frequently to do so by his family. Surviving are his wife of 72 years, Jean; 2 children, Roxanne (Bill) Sandul and Patrick (Stacey) Russell; and his youngest brother, Bob (Fran) Russell. He was also a beloved "Pops" to his 3 surviving grandchildren; Megan (Norm) Wain, Shane (Meghan) Russell, Lauren Russell and 5 great grandchildren: Matthew, Sam, Rachel, Caleb and Jacob Wain and baby Graham Russell (expected in the spring). In addition to his parents and 2 older brothers (Ed and Jim), Pete was predeceased by his 17 year-old grandson, Matthew Russell Bailey and a son-in-law (Bill Bailey). Prior to moving to The TowneHouse, Pete was a member of Trinity Episcopal Church. A memorial service is being planned for Saturday, November 15, 2025, at 1:00pm in the chapel of The TowneHouse Retirement Community, where Pete and Jean have lived for the past two years. In lieu of flowers, family requests that memorials be made in Pete's memory to Alzheimer's Disease Research. A private burial service will be held at Concordia Cemetery.
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Services

Memorial Service

Calendar
November
15

The Towne House Retirement Center Chapel

2209 Saint Joe Center Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46825

Starts at 1:00 pm

Interment

Concordia Cemetery Gardens

5365 Lake Ave, Fort Wayne, IN 46815

Harold Russell's Guestbook

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