"RALPH A. RUSSO
Middletown, N.Y.
Ralph A. Russo, of Middletown, a lifelong resident of the area, former owner of Russo's Confectionery, died Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2006 at Middletown Park Manor. He was 89.
The son of the late Rocco and Olga Prager Russo, he was born on August 18, 1916 in Middletown.
He was the widower of Concetta Guzzetti Russo.
A veteran, Mr. Russo served in the US Army during WWII as a sergeant in the 38th division in the South Pacific. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign War and the American Legion.
Ralph served as a congressional aide for Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman when Mr. Gilman served in the US Congress. He also served as an aide to Congressman Gilman when Mr. Gilman served as member of the NYS Assembly. An active member of Citizens for Gilman, he ran the fund raising area. He was a member and past chairman of the City of Middletown Republican Committee and served as a Republican State Committee member, 98th District. Having been appointed by Gov. Rockefeller, Ralph served on the Board of the NYS Division of Youth.
Ralph was a member of St. Joseph's RC Church in Middletownl He was a 4th Degree member of the Knights of Columbus, where he served as past Grand Knight, past Faithful Navigator and past District Deputy. He was a member of the Thrall Library Board, served on the Board of Directors of Occupations, Inc., and was a member of the Advisory Board for the Salvation Army in Middletown and the Middletown Lions Club.
Survivors include his children, Jackie McNally and husband Daniel W. of Matamoras, Pa., Michael Russo of Middletown and Ralph Russ [s.i.c.] Jr. and wife Ruth of Lyndhurst, N.J.; his grandchildren, Dina Russo, Brad McNally and wife Monica, Brent, Brian, and Daniel McNally; his great-grandchildren, Gianna and Tony Arantes; as well as many nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by several brothers and sisters.
Visitation hours will be held from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, January 19, 2006 at and [as printed] Friday, Jan. 20 at the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc., 72 West Main St., Middletown.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 21 at St. Joseph's R.C. Church in Middletown.
Burial will be at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Middletown.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in his honor to the Thrall Library Children's Reading Room, 11-19 Depot St., Middletown, NY 10940.
Arrangements are by the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
---------------------------------------
Transcription of the article:
"GILMAN AIDE RALPH RUSSO IS WARMLY REMEMBERED
By Dianna Cahn, Times Herald-Record [email protected]
MIDDLETOWN-- The joke about Ralph Russo was that as a serviceman in World War II, he would shout insults over the battle line. But when the enemy shouted 'to heck with FDR,' Russo didn't fire back. Why not? commanders asked. 'Because,' he was said to have replied, 'how can I shoot a fellow Republican?' It was a joke told in speeches across the years, said Richard Mayfield, a Republican regional director for the state assembly. But it captured the dedication of the Middletown lifer who died Tuesday at 89.
'He was one of those people that if you had a problem, ... if Ralph Russo wasn't in your Rolodex, you weren't really in this business,' said Mayfield, who Russo trained as an intern in Rep. Ben Gilman's office.
'Ralph had the ability as did Ben Gilman, to take you into a crowded room and make you feel like you were the most important person in the room,' Mayfield said. 'He was larger than life.'
From candy store owner to Republican committeeman and Gilman aide, Russo was remembered yesterday as a political master who never lost sight of his deep community roots.
'He was the old-fashioned gentleman politician,' said Andrew Zarutskie, Town of Newburgh clerk. 'He believed politics were a way of achieving good government and once the election was over, you shake hands.'.
Russo and Gilman met working for veterans. They bonded, and everywhere Ben went, Ralph was there, from state Legislature to U.S. Congress.
'We were like part of each other,' Gilman said. 'We loved our community together.'
But Russo was also a fierce debater and could argue up a stubborn storm. They would laugh and 'fight like mad about things we didn't agree on,' Gilman said. 'He was a real tiger.'
Russo was active with the Salvation Army, the Lions Club, and St. Joseph's Church. As a Thrall Library Board member for 16 years, he remembered staff with donuts and coffee and regaled them with tales of the Middletown where he was born in 1916.
Russo was once arrested for selling condoms to teens at his store, which now - Orange County Executive Edward Diana recalled fondly in a 1980's speech. 'He did something that, at that point, was probably ahead of his time, but is today commonplace,' Diana said yesterday. 'That was the kind of man he was. He did what he believed in. 'Russo laughed about it, said his son Michael, 53, who lives in the house where his father was born. His father could yell over something, then say, let's have coffee. And he could tell Middletown stories in his sleep.
The man who lived his life in Middletown will be laid to rest here Saturday, at St. Joseph's Cemetery."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
From the records of The Middletown THRALL Library scrapbooks (2006-2007 book), Government Documents office.
NOTE: no relation to B.E.F. Stienstra, librarian at Middletown Thrall Library. I originally added this January 19, 2006 (now deleted) from:
The Times Herald-Record on 1/19/2006--
http://www.legacy.com/RecordOnline/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=16393683
Middletown, N.Y.
Ralph A. Russo, of Middletown, a lifelong resident of the area, former owner of Russo's Confectionery, died Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2006 at Middletown Park Manor. He was 89.
The son of the late Rocco and Olga Prager Russo, he was born on August 18, 1916 in Middletown.
He was the widower of Concetta Guzzetti Russo.
A veteran, Mr. Russo served in the US Army during WWII as a sergeant in the 38th division in the South Pacific. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign War and the American Legion.
Ralph served as a congressional aide for Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman when Mr. Gilman served in the US Congress. He also served as an aide to Congressman Gilman when Mr. Gilman served as member of the NYS Assembly. An active member of Citizens for Gilman, he ran the fund raising area. He was a member and past chairman of the City of Middletown Republican Committee and served as a Republican State Committee member, 98th District. Having been appointed by Gov. Rockefeller, Ralph served on the Board of the NYS Division of Youth.
Ralph was a member of St. Joseph's RC Church in Middletownl He was a 4th Degree member of the Knights of Columbus, where he served as past Grand Knight, past Faithful Navigator and past District Deputy. He was a member of the Thrall Library Board, served on the Board of Directors of Occupations, Inc., and was a member of the Advisory Board for the Salvation Army in Middletown and the Middletown Lions Club.
Survivors include his children, Jackie McNally and husband Daniel W. of Matamoras, Pa., Michael Russo of Middletown and Ralph Russ [s.i.c.] Jr. and wife Ruth of Lyndhurst, N.J.; his grandchildren, Dina Russo, Brad McNally and wife Monica, Brent, Brian, and Daniel McNally; his great-grandchildren, Gianna and Tony Arantes; as well as many nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by several brothers and sisters.
Visitation hours will be held from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, January 19, 2006 at and [as printed] Friday, Jan. 20 at the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc., 72 West Main St., Middletown.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 21 at St. Joseph's R.C. Church in Middletown.
Burial will be at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Middletown.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in his honor to the Thrall Library Children's Reading Room, 11-19 Depot St., Middletown, NY 10940.
Arrangements are by the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
---------------------------------------
Transcription of the article:
"GILMAN AIDE RALPH RUSSO IS WARMLY REMEMBERED
By Dianna Cahn, Times Herald-Record [email protected]
MIDDLETOWN-- The joke about Ralph Russo was that as a serviceman in World War II, he would shout insults over the battle line. But when the enemy shouted 'to heck with FDR,' Russo didn't fire back. Why not? commanders asked. 'Because,' he was said to have replied, 'how can I shoot a fellow Republican?' It was a joke told in speeches across the years, said Richard Mayfield, a Republican regional director for the state assembly. But it captured the dedication of the Middletown lifer who died Tuesday at 89.
'He was one of those people that if you had a problem, ... if Ralph Russo wasn't in your Rolodex, you weren't really in this business,' said Mayfield, who Russo trained as an intern in Rep. Ben Gilman's office.
'Ralph had the ability as did Ben Gilman, to take you into a crowded room and make you feel like you were the most important person in the room,' Mayfield said. 'He was larger than life.'
From candy store owner to Republican committeeman and Gilman aide, Russo was remembered yesterday as a political master who never lost sight of his deep community roots.
'He was the old-fashioned gentleman politician,' said Andrew Zarutskie, Town of Newburgh clerk. 'He believed politics were a way of achieving good government and once the election was over, you shake hands.'.
Russo and Gilman met working for veterans. They bonded, and everywhere Ben went, Ralph was there, from state Legislature to U.S. Congress.
'We were like part of each other,' Gilman said. 'We loved our community together.'
But Russo was also a fierce debater and could argue up a stubborn storm. They would laugh and 'fight like mad about things we didn't agree on,' Gilman said. 'He was a real tiger.'
Russo was active with the Salvation Army, the Lions Club, and St. Joseph's Church. As a Thrall Library Board member for 16 years, he remembered staff with donuts and coffee and regaled them with tales of the Middletown where he was born in 1916.
Russo was once arrested for selling condoms to teens at his store, which now - Orange County Executive Edward Diana recalled fondly in a 1980's speech. 'He did something that, at that point, was probably ahead of his time, but is today commonplace,' Diana said yesterday. 'That was the kind of man he was. He did what he believed in. 'Russo laughed about it, said his son Michael, 53, who lives in the house where his father was born. His father could yell over something, then say, let's have coffee. And he could tell Middletown stories in his sleep.
The man who lived his life in Middletown will be laid to rest here Saturday, at St. Joseph's Cemetery."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
From the records of The Middletown THRALL Library scrapbooks (2006-2007 book), Government Documents office.
NOTE: no relation to B.E.F. Stienstra, librarian at Middletown Thrall Library. I originally added this January 19, 2006 (now deleted) from:
The Times Herald-Record on 1/19/2006--
http://www.legacy.com/RecordOnline/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=16393683
"RALPH A. RUSSO
Middletown, N.Y.
Ralph A. Russo, of Middletown, a lifelong resident of the area, former owner of Russo's Confectionery, died Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2006 at Middletown Park Manor. He was 89.
The son of the late Rocco and Olga Prager Russo, he was born on August 18, 1916 in Middletown.
He was the widower of Concetta Guzzetti Russo.
A veteran, Mr. Russo served in the US Army during WWII as a sergeant in the 38th division in the South Pacific. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign War and the American Legion.
Ralph served as a congressional aide for Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman when Mr. Gilman served in the US Congress. He also served as an aide to Congressman Gilman when Mr. Gilman served as member of the NYS Assembly. An active member of Citizens for Gilman, he ran the fund raising area. He was a member and past chairman of the City of Middletown Republican Committee and served as a Republican State Committee member, 98th District. Having been appointed by Gov. Rockefeller, Ralph served on the Board of the NYS Division of Youth.
Ralph was a member of St. Joseph's RC Church in Middletownl He was a 4th Degree member of the Knights of Columbus, where he served as past Grand Knight, past Faithful Navigator and past District Deputy. He was a member of the Thrall Library Board, served on the Board of Directors of Occupations, Inc., and was a member of the Advisory Board for the Salvation Army in Middletown and the Middletown Lions Club.
Survivors include his children, Jackie McNally and husband Daniel W. of Matamoras, Pa., Michael Russo of Middletown and Ralph Russ [s.i.c.] Jr. and wife Ruth of Lyndhurst, N.J.; his grandchildren, Dina Russo, Brad McNally and wife Monica, Brent, Brian, and Daniel McNally; his great-grandchildren, Gianna and Tony Arantes; as well as many nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by several brothers and sisters.
Visitation hours will be held from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, January 19, 2006 at and [as printed] Friday, Jan. 20 at the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc., 72 West Main St., Middletown.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 21 at St. Joseph's R.C. Church in Middletown.
Burial will be at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Middletown.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in his honor to the Thrall Library Children's Reading Room, 11-19 Depot St., Middletown, NY 10940.
Arrangements are by the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
---------------------------------------
Transcription of the article:
"GILMAN AIDE RALPH RUSSO IS WARMLY REMEMBERED
By Dianna Cahn, Times Herald-Record [email protected]
MIDDLETOWN-- The joke about Ralph Russo was that as a serviceman in World War II, he would shout insults over the battle line. But when the enemy shouted 'to heck with FDR,' Russo didn't fire back. Why not? commanders asked. 'Because,' he was said to have replied, 'how can I shoot a fellow Republican?' It was a joke told in speeches across the years, said Richard Mayfield, a Republican regional director for the state assembly. But it captured the dedication of the Middletown lifer who died Tuesday at 89.
'He was one of those people that if you had a problem, ... if Ralph Russo wasn't in your Rolodex, you weren't really in this business,' said Mayfield, who Russo trained as an intern in Rep. Ben Gilman's office.
'Ralph had the ability as did Ben Gilman, to take you into a crowded room and make you feel like you were the most important person in the room,' Mayfield said. 'He was larger than life.'
From candy store owner to Republican committeeman and Gilman aide, Russo was remembered yesterday as a political master who never lost sight of his deep community roots.
'He was the old-fashioned gentleman politician,' said Andrew Zarutskie, Town of Newburgh clerk. 'He believed politics were a way of achieving good government and once the election was over, you shake hands.'.
Russo and Gilman met working for veterans. They bonded, and everywhere Ben went, Ralph was there, from state Legislature to U.S. Congress.
'We were like part of each other,' Gilman said. 'We loved our community together.'
But Russo was also a fierce debater and could argue up a stubborn storm. They would laugh and 'fight like mad about things we didn't agree on,' Gilman said. 'He was a real tiger.'
Russo was active with the Salvation Army, the Lions Club, and St. Joseph's Church. As a Thrall Library Board member for 16 years, he remembered staff with donuts and coffee and regaled them with tales of the Middletown where he was born in 1916.
Russo was once arrested for selling condoms to teens at his store, which now - Orange County Executive Edward Diana recalled fondly in a 1980's speech. 'He did something that, at that point, was probably ahead of his time, but is today commonplace,' Diana said yesterday. 'That was the kind of man he was. He did what he believed in. 'Russo laughed about it, said his son Michael, 53, who lives in the house where his father was born. His father could yell over something, then say, let's have coffee. And he could tell Middletown stories in his sleep.
The man who lived his life in Middletown will be laid to rest here Saturday, at St. Joseph's Cemetery."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
From the records of The Middletown THRALL Library scrapbooks (2006-2007 book), Government Documents office.
NOTE: no relation to B.E.F. Stienstra, librarian at Middletown Thrall Library. I originally added this January 19, 2006 (now deleted) from:
The Times Herald-Record on 1/19/2006--
http://www.legacy.com/RecordOnline/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=16393683
Middletown, N.Y.
Ralph A. Russo, of Middletown, a lifelong resident of the area, former owner of Russo's Confectionery, died Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2006 at Middletown Park Manor. He was 89.
The son of the late Rocco and Olga Prager Russo, he was born on August 18, 1916 in Middletown.
He was the widower of Concetta Guzzetti Russo.
A veteran, Mr. Russo served in the US Army during WWII as a sergeant in the 38th division in the South Pacific. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign War and the American Legion.
Ralph served as a congressional aide for Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman when Mr. Gilman served in the US Congress. He also served as an aide to Congressman Gilman when Mr. Gilman served as member of the NYS Assembly. An active member of Citizens for Gilman, he ran the fund raising area. He was a member and past chairman of the City of Middletown Republican Committee and served as a Republican State Committee member, 98th District. Having been appointed by Gov. Rockefeller, Ralph served on the Board of the NYS Division of Youth.
Ralph was a member of St. Joseph's RC Church in Middletownl He was a 4th Degree member of the Knights of Columbus, where he served as past Grand Knight, past Faithful Navigator and past District Deputy. He was a member of the Thrall Library Board, served on the Board of Directors of Occupations, Inc., and was a member of the Advisory Board for the Salvation Army in Middletown and the Middletown Lions Club.
Survivors include his children, Jackie McNally and husband Daniel W. of Matamoras, Pa., Michael Russo of Middletown and Ralph Russ [s.i.c.] Jr. and wife Ruth of Lyndhurst, N.J.; his grandchildren, Dina Russo, Brad McNally and wife Monica, Brent, Brian, and Daniel McNally; his great-grandchildren, Gianna and Tony Arantes; as well as many nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by several brothers and sisters.
Visitation hours will be held from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, January 19, 2006 at and [as printed] Friday, Jan. 20 at the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc., 72 West Main St., Middletown.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 21 at St. Joseph's R.C. Church in Middletown.
Burial will be at St. Joseph's Cemetery in Middletown.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in his honor to the Thrall Library Children's Reading Room, 11-19 Depot St., Middletown, NY 10940.
Arrangements are by the Ralston-Lippincott-Hasbrouck-Ingrassia Funeral Home, Inc."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
---------------------------------------
Transcription of the article:
"GILMAN AIDE RALPH RUSSO IS WARMLY REMEMBERED
By Dianna Cahn, Times Herald-Record [email protected]
MIDDLETOWN-- The joke about Ralph Russo was that as a serviceman in World War II, he would shout insults over the battle line. But when the enemy shouted 'to heck with FDR,' Russo didn't fire back. Why not? commanders asked. 'Because,' he was said to have replied, 'how can I shoot a fellow Republican?' It was a joke told in speeches across the years, said Richard Mayfield, a Republican regional director for the state assembly. But it captured the dedication of the Middletown lifer who died Tuesday at 89.
'He was one of those people that if you had a problem, ... if Ralph Russo wasn't in your Rolodex, you weren't really in this business,' said Mayfield, who Russo trained as an intern in Rep. Ben Gilman's office.
'Ralph had the ability as did Ben Gilman, to take you into a crowded room and make you feel like you were the most important person in the room,' Mayfield said. 'He was larger than life.'
From candy store owner to Republican committeeman and Gilman aide, Russo was remembered yesterday as a political master who never lost sight of his deep community roots.
'He was the old-fashioned gentleman politician,' said Andrew Zarutskie, Town of Newburgh clerk. 'He believed politics were a way of achieving good government and once the election was over, you shake hands.'.
Russo and Gilman met working for veterans. They bonded, and everywhere Ben went, Ralph was there, from state Legislature to U.S. Congress.
'We were like part of each other,' Gilman said. 'We loved our community together.'
But Russo was also a fierce debater and could argue up a stubborn storm. They would laugh and 'fight like mad about things we didn't agree on,' Gilman said. 'He was a real tiger.'
Russo was active with the Salvation Army, the Lions Club, and St. Joseph's Church. As a Thrall Library Board member for 16 years, he remembered staff with donuts and coffee and regaled them with tales of the Middletown where he was born in 1916.
Russo was once arrested for selling condoms to teens at his store, which now - Orange County Executive Edward Diana recalled fondly in a 1980's speech. 'He did something that, at that point, was probably ahead of his time, but is today commonplace,' Diana said yesterday. 'That was the kind of man he was. He did what he believed in. 'Russo laughed about it, said his son Michael, 53, who lives in the house where his father was born. His father could yell over something, then say, let's have coffee. And he could tell Middletown stories in his sleep.
The man who lived his life in Middletown will be laid to rest here Saturday, at St. Joseph's Cemetery."
The Middletown Times Herald Record obituaries section for "1-19-06", no pagination indicated.
From the records of The Middletown THRALL Library scrapbooks (2006-2007 book), Government Documents office.
NOTE: no relation to B.E.F. Stienstra, librarian at Middletown Thrall Library. I originally added this January 19, 2006 (now deleted) from:
The Times Herald-Record on 1/19/2006--
http://www.legacy.com/RecordOnline/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=16393683
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