The moment Charliss Russ lost her father in January 2013, it crystallized for her the urgency of doing something she had set out to do some time ago.
"I always had in the back of my mind what I would set aside financially and where it was going to go," Russ said.
Contemplating her own eventual passing, Russ said there were several places she had considered leaving her own estate. Then it occurred to her she might meet the greatest needs by looking no further than her own former backyard.
"UALR was my childhood playground," said Russ, explaining the home of her youth was located at the corner of 29th and Taylor Streets, near the UA LITTLE ROCK campus.
Eventually, UALR represented not just a "playground," but a place for learning. Professors at what was then called Little Rock Junior College taught the nursing students at St. Vincent Infirmary, where Russ' mother worked.
And Russ herself became a first-generation, non-traditional student following several years of working at St. Vincent. She says she wanted to honor her parents memory and also the valuable education she received at UALR.
Leaving the entirety of her estate to the university, she has endowed no less than six scholarships (two named for her dad, two for her mom, and two in her own name).
At an endowment of $15,000 each, the first Russ scholarships will be awarded in Fall 2015. The newly endowed scholarships are:
- The Francis Alan "Pete" Russ Greatest Need Endowment for the benefit of Management
- The Francis Alan "Pete" Russ Management Scholarship
- Hazel Kriegbaum Russ Greatest Need Endowment for the benefit of Nursing
- Hazel Kriegbaum Russ Nursing Scholarship
- Charliss Russ Greatest Need Endowment for the benefit of Marketing and Advertising
- Charliss Russ Marketing and Advertising Scholarship.
"Before she passed away, I talked it over with mom, and she was so pleased," said Russ.
"I knew I had made the right decision to honor my parents with a variety of scholarships, each reflecting their lives and their passion."
More about the Russ family
Francis Alan "Pete" Russ
Feb. 4, 1925 - Jan. 7, 2013
Francis Alan "Pete" Russ dropped out of high school to serve in the U.S. Navy during World War II. His ship, the USS Goss, was a member of the fleet in Tokyo Bay when Japan surrendered to General Douglas McArthur. After completing his military service, he earned his GED and began his vocation as a sheet metal worker. On Dec. 8, 1951, he married Hazel Louise Kriegbaum, and in 1954, they purchased a home on the southeast corner of 29th and Taylor streets (when Taylor Street was the western boundary of the Little Rock city limits). There they raised two children, Charliss Marie Russ and Louis Alan Russ. He retired from Alcoa after 30 years.
Hazel Louise Kriegbaum Russ
March 23, 1931 - Aug. 18, 2013
Hazel Louise Kriegbaum Russ was a 1948 graduate of Bryant High School and a 1951 graduate of St. Vincent Infirmary, where professors from Little Rock Junior College taught the nursing students. During her professional career, she served as an office, staff, and surgical nurse, and she retired in 1989 after 38 years of devoted service to the profession she loved.
Charliss Marie Russ
Dec. 9, 1952 –
Charliss Marie Russ is a 1970 graduate of Little Rock Central High and, as a first-generation college student, attended UALR for a few semesters after high school. While working full-time at St. Vincent Infirmary, she returned to UALR as a part-time student to earn a Bachelor of Business Administration (Marketing) degree in 1997 and a Master of Business Administration degree in 2000. In addition to 25 years with St. Vincent, she has worked for Heifer International and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
Information contained herein was accurate at the time of posting. The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. Figures cited in any examples are for illustrative purposes only. References to tax rates include federal taxes only and are subject to change. State law may further impact your individual results. California residents: Annuities are subject to regulation by the State of California. Payments under such agreements, however, are not protected or otherwise guaranteed by any government agency or the California Life and Health Insurance Guarantee Association. Oklahoma residents: A charitable gift annuity is not regulated by the Oklahoma Insurance Department and is not protected by a guaranty association affiliated with the Oklahoma Insurance Department. South Dakota residents: Charitable gift annuities are not regulated by and are not under the jurisdiction of the South Dakota Division of Insurance.
