Kirk Maurice Russell

Kirk Maurice Russell died two days after Christmas, finally letting go after a long, painful decline with Alzheimer’s. He passed around 3 a.m. on December 27, 2025. He was 78 years old. Kirk was born on January 8, 1947, in New York City to Pauline Sinz Russell and Fredrick K. Russell. He was the youngest of five boys (Kirk was an identical twin). Kirk was preceded in death by his mother, Pauline Russell, father Ted Russell, brother David Russell, and brother Fritz Russell.

A native of New York, Kirk graduated from Richmond High School in 1964. After briefly attending  Drew University in New Jersey, he returned to New York City where he attended two driving schools. Kirk was trained to drive big gas trucks through narrow neighborhood streets in winter, delivering fuel directly to people’s homes. He also worked at a coffee shop in Kew Gardens in his early 20s, where he experienced the joy of hearing some of the great folk musicians of the time perform live in their early careers. Kirk was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. He served as a chauffeur in Washington, D.C., while his twin brother, Tom, was in Vietnam.

 In 1974 at the age of 23, Kirk moved to Olympia to be with Tom. Over the next 60 years Kirk created a meaningful life in his community and family. Kirk’s first job in Olympia was for a record store next door to the Rainbow Restaurant. Kirk became a manager and bartender at the Rainbow for several years. In the early '90s he joined the staff at the Olympia Food Coop. Serving as a volunteer as well as an educational assistant on staff, he worked with kids at Olympia elementary schools (Roosevelt, Garfield and McLane). From 1990 through 2015, Kirk was a volunteer musician and Sunday school teacher at The United Churches of Olympia. Kirk retired in 2015, as his illness from Alzheimer’s was starting to impact his life.

 In 1994, Kirk earned a BA in music and literature from The Evergreen State College. Kirk loved music and words. He was a guitar player and a singer, someone who could carry a tune and lose himself in it. Music stayed with him long after many other things fell away. He also loved language, crossword puzzles, journals filled with his thoughts, lists, and observations. Words mattered to him. They were how he made sense of the world. And he had a great sense of humor, a comedian through and through with a special love for Laurel and Hardy and The Three Stooges.

 A marriage in 1975, with Vinnie Wright, ended in divorce. In 1984, Kirk married Billie-Gwen Tippett, and together they had one child, Joanna Rae (Russell) Lopez.

 Kirk is survived by his wife Billie-Gwen Russell, daughter Joanna Rae Lopez, grandson Felix Kirk Lopez, son-in-law Richard Lopez, brother Tom Russell, brother Paul Russell, and a large extended family/community.

Memorial contributions can be made in Kirk’s name to research for Alzheimer’s and or for an alcohol dependency recovery program of your choosing.