Obituary of Elizabeth S. Russo

Russo, Elizabeth Shay

September 4, 1941 - July 8, 2025

Elizabeth grew up in her family’s homestead in Highland, New York. As a young girl, she, alongside her younger sister Kathleen Shay Lawler, helped on the family farm taking care of the animals, picking apples, and collecting eggs to sell from the back porch of her parents’ home. She took up sewing, enjoyed making many of her own clothes, joined the 4H club, and developed a love of music, playing the trumpet and French horn in the high school band.

While she attended the College of St. Rose in Albany, New York obtaining her Bachelor of Arts degree in Education, her friend set her up on a blind date with David Alan Russo from Siena College. They dated for a short time, but when David announced he was moving to get his doctorate from Catholic University in Washington, D.C., they decided to go their separate ways. However, David couldn’t leave it there and decided to share that he had strong feelings for her and hoped that she also felt the same. Several months later they set a date and were married.

Their early family years were in Mt. Rainier, Maryland, and Edison, New Jersey, where Elizabeth and David raised their two daughters, Kathleen and Cara. Elizabeth was a full-time teacher and enjoyed shaping the lives of hundreds of students over her 40-year career in education. She spent time with the Academically Talented program, and then later taught Religion at Bishop George Ahr High School (now. St. Thomas Aquinas) in Edison, New Jersey, where she also served as teacher-mentor for the Christian Social Action Club (CSAC).

Elizabeth and David were active members in the Diocese of Metuchen at St. Francis of Assisi for many years, where they were a part of Marriage and Engaged Encounters for young couples within the church community. Their faith and devotion to service were always present within everything they chose to invest their time and talent in. Elizabeth was known by many people as a listener, comfort in their storms. Her acts of stewardship continued when she and David relocated to Audubon, Pennsylvania, where she taught CCD at St. Teresa of Avila and later became a Eucharistic Minister at St. Eleanor Catholic Church in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. She is missed by many of the friends and neighbors of the St. Eleanor community.

A beloved wife, mother, and grandmother (Nana), she died on July 8, 2025 at peace. Elizabeth was predeceased by her parents, Elizabeth Ernst Shay and Thomas John Shay, Jr. She is survived by her husband of 59 years, David, her daughter Kathleen Russo-Garcia, her husband, Juan, and their children Anthony and Joseph; her daughter Cara R. Kennedy, her husband Daniel, and their children William, James, and Theodore; and her beloved sister Kathleen and her family.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, July 15, 2025 at 11:00 AM at St. Eleanor’s RC Church, 647 Locust Street, Collegeville, PA.

Relatives and friends may call on the family Monday evening from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM, followed by vigil prayers at 7:30 PM in the Moore, Snear, & Ruggiero Funeral Home, 224 West Main Street, Trappe, PA. An additional viewing will be held on Tuesday morning from 10:00 AM to 10:45 AM at St. Eleanor’s RC Church prior to Mass.

Interment will be private in St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery, Gardiner, New York.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions to made be made in her name to St. Eleanor’s RC Church, 647 Locust Street, Collegeville, PA 19426.

Arrangements by Moore, Snear & Ruggiero Funeral Home, 224 West Main Street, Trappe, PA, (610) 489-7900. www.msrfh.com.