Mary Andrijeski Russell

Mary Andrijeski Russell, age 56, passed away April 9, 2021 in her home. She was surrounded by her family as she succumbed to her 5-year valiant battle with cancer.

She was born May 9, 1964 in Bangor, Maine to Lucy and Daniel Andrijeski and was third in line to her four siblings. She married her college sweetheart and lifelong love Richard Russell in March of 1988 who is survived by her today.

For the last 12 years Mary was an academic advisor for the university of Texas at Arlington. It was a rare occasion to not see her at one of her students’ games cheering them on or following them to class to ensure they were where they needed to be. While having no children of her own, her nieces and nephews were the light of her life. Her devoted career in education meant she could touch the lives of thousands of students, while allowing her the freedom of boundless adventure with her husband Richard.

Mary and Richard are no stranger to adventure. Over the course of their 33 years of marriage if they were not at their season ticket seats for the Texas Rangers, then they were planning their next scuba dive destination. The pair had nearly 500 dives under their belts spanning the globe from Mexico, Nicaragua, Belize, and many more.

Selfless is often a word used to describe Mary. In her final act of selflessness, she wished to donate her body to science and further cancer research through UT Southwestern. Her legacy of education now immortalized.

She is survived by her husband Richard Russell, father and mother in-law Bob and Fran Russell, brother-in-law Clifton Russell, sister-in-law and husband Laura and John Miley, nephew Dane Miley, sister Sue Bieg, niece and husband Erin and Marshal Strawn, niece and nephew Emma and Ethan Bieg, sister Sandra Maverick, nieces Shannon and Reilly Maverick, brother and wife Daniel and Conchita Andrijeski, nephews Merrick and Devin Andrijeski, sister Tina Hood and nieces Audrey and Lana Hood.