Russell D. Daves

Russell Durwood Daves, long-time Lubbock attorney, met his Lord & Savior Jesus Christ on January 14, 2023, at age 77.  Russell was born in Sterling City, TX to Gordon & Marie Rhoden Daves on January 8, 1946. The family later moved to Kerrville, TX where he was baptized into the Baptist Church at age nine. He attended Tivy Public Schools. From 1962-65  he served a tour of duty in the US Army, at the American Embassy, in Bangkok, Thailand as a cryptographer in the Intelligence Office.

If you knew Russ you knew he was an adventure seeker, who loved thrilling sports and traveling all over the world. He learned scuba diving in the Gulf of Siam and joined the choir in the Baptist Church while in Bangkok! A friend taught him to skydive. (His friend had only made one jump at the time!)

By the time he returned to Kerrville he had been teaching skydiving in San Marcos, then later Slaton, Kerrville, and Lubbock. He and Ann met at the Texaco Gas Station in Kerrville in December 1967 and after this, they dated non-stop! When he first proposed, Ann remembered thinking to herself that it would be like a merry-go-round if she married Russ and they married at her little church on June 27, 1968.

Russ was considered a major skydiver in this part of the country & was well known. He had logged about 1,500 jumps and had trained hundreds of student jumpers! This led him to become a pilot and buy his first airplane. It became a jump plane right away! He graduated from Southwest Texas State University with Honors in two majors. Then he and Ann moved to Lubbock in January 1971.

He graduated from Texas Tech School of Law in 1976 and had his own law practice in downtown Lubbock for 45 years. Russ enjoyed his law practice immensely, especially finding creative solutions to help his clients. He spent the majority of his practice fighting insurance company lawyers and winning cases for the underdogs!

Russ was not just an attorney, as he built the family home in Ransom Canyon in 1981 and a second home in Harper, TX in 1985, where many wonderful holidays were spent with family. He was best friends and hunting buddies with his father-in-law, Andrew Lohman. Then the family doubled in size when the darling little girls were born. Russ gave up skydiving but was still flying planes, and planning beautiful trips for his family, even white-water rafting trips too! He doted on his family, trying never to miss the activities of his girls, even riding the school buses with Ann on the high school out-of-town band trips during football season.

Russ was a strong believer in Christ and remembered joining First Baptist Church in Kerrville and being baptized in the Holy Spirit. He was a strong believer in helping his church & different charities. He was a member of First Baptist Church in Lubbock.

When the two little grandchildren came along he was in hog heaven, playing games, reading to them & talking on the phone! He built his first airplane & it flew in 2006. He continued buying kit airplanes and building until he passed away. He had many pilot friends from all over the USA.

Those dear ones who have preceded him in death include his father & mother, father & mother-in-law, stepfather, brother-in-law, and several close friends.

Those left to cherish his memory include his loving wife Ann Daves of 54 years; daughter Jacqui Isser (Marc) of Cedar Park, TX; daughter Meaghan Vandeloo (Kevin) of Parker, CO; granddaughter Jill Scarlett Vandeloo; grandson Eric Rhys Vandeloo; Sisters Lynnette Cooper and Caroline Welch of Kerrville, TX; Brother Al Daves of Austin, additional extended family, and loved ones.

Private interment will be held at a later date at the Nichols Cemetery in Ingram, Kerr County, TX.

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