Russell Page

Funeral services will be 10:00 A.M., Thursday January 24, at First Baptist Church, Decatur, IL. Visitation will be 6 to 8 P.M., Wednesday, January 23, at Brintlinger & Earl Funeral Home, Decatur, IL. Graveside services and burial will be 3:00 P.M., Thursday, January 24, at Sunset Memorial Park in Du Quoin, IL. Memorials may be made to First Baptist Church.Russ was born in Du Quoin, Illinois, the son of Mr. and Mrs. James E. Page, Sr., on October 18, 1927. He was a graduate of primary and grade schools in Sanford, Florida. He attended University High School in Carbondale, Illinois before graduating from the Du Quoin Township High School in only three years. He attended the University of Illinois for one year, before serving a brief period in the USNR during WWII. Following this service, Russ returned home, completed two years of pre-engineering at Southern Illinois University, and graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a Civil Engineering degree. His aunt, and guardian, was a resident of Oklahoma City, OK.Russ married the former June Neville (Clark) of Du Quoin on June 10, 1950. They had no children. He joined the Wabash Railroad in 1950 to serve as a field Engineer on a 7.5 mile line change in the Barry, Illinois area. In 1951, Russ was transferred to Decatur, IL as an Assistant Division Engineer.With only eight months of service, during WWII, Russ was called back into military service in 1954, during the Korean War. He served at the Army Transportation Research and Development Command at Fort Eustis, VA where he developed the concept of an air transportable locomotive for the U.S. Army, following such a need generated by the Battle of the Bulge in Germany.Russ joined Caterpillar Tractor Company in 1956 and retired from Caterpillar in 1988. He was a Project Engineer and held 18 patents on earthmoving equipment, the most notable being a mechanical lock to prevent a motor grader blade from windmilling under load, and an automatic blade control for motor graders that maintained a preset angle of blade slope, with respect to gravity, as the motor grader advanced down a roadway. He also developed concept designs for off-highway trucks.In 1974, Russ became a charter member of the Stephen Decatur Chapter of the Illinois Society Sons of the American Revolution. In 1985, he was elected President of the Illinois Society. Following this service, Russ was elected National Trustee, then Vice President General of the National Society. Running for national office, Russ served two terms as Treasurer General, and one term as Secretary General of the National Society Sons of the American Revolution. He was elected President General in 1998. During his term as President General, 1998-1999, he and First Lady June Page made 40 major trips visiting state and district and societies, and local chapters across the United States. During this period, he also managed the National Society Headquarters in Louisville, KY, with the help and support of his Executive Director Wayne Wiedman and a very loyal and capable Executive Committee. The greatest achievement during his service as President General was in contesting, and settling, a legal battle to retain a charitable gift left in trust to the Society by Compatriot Robert Friend of Chicago, IL. This brought 1.4 million dollars to the Society. President General Page designated 300,000 dollars of these funds for seed money to purchase land and start planning the 6 million dollar Center for Advancing Americas Heritage in Louisville, KY. This is currently the major on-going project of the Society.Russ was a member of the First Baptist Church of Decatur for almost 50 years. He held various offices including Sunday School teacher, deacon, trustee, and moderator. He is survived by June, his wife of 57 years, brother Col. James E. Page, Jr. (Retired) of San Antonio, TX, five nieces and three nephews. One niece passed away in 2006. "
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