February 12, 2024

Louise Gervais Russell passed away at St. Clare Hospital on February 2, 2024 at age 83. She was born October 17, 1940 in El Dorado, Arkansas and grew up in St. Louis, graduating from Maplewood Richmond Heights High School in 1958; she lived in Shrewsbury for the past two decades. She loved animals, was a longtime supporter of the National Wildlife Federation, and enjoyed feeding birds and spoiling her pets. A lover of history, mythology, and faraway places, she took the trip of a lifetime to Greece combining all those passions and creating some of her best memories, topped only by her 1972 appearance on Jeopardy. Louise was an only child, a natural introvert, whose books were her best friends throughout life, as she engaged with characters and places around the world that excited and entertained her. She was an idealist, a deep thinker, always wrestling with big ideas, and she never stopped learning and championing the underdog. Louise loved her family and especially adored being a Grandma. She encouraged and supported her children and grandchildren through all their choices, the good and bad, always loving them along the way. She will be dearly missed. She is survived by her three children: Michael (Tara Weiss Pilz) Sherrill and Lara (Kathy Hodgson) Sherrill of St. Louis, and Suzanne (Bryan) Doeren of California; and her two grandsons, Connor and Brody Doeren of California. She was especially close to her cousins: Ann (Max Nall) McReynolds of Webster Groves, Susan Bonnell of New Mexico, and Tom McReynolds of St. Louis.

The funeral will be held in Thompson Chapel of Emmanuel Episcopal Church, 9 South Bompart Avenue, Webster Groves, on Saturday, February 17 at 2:30. Immediately afterwards, Louise’s ashes will be interred in Emmanuel’s Memorial Garden, which adjoins the chapel. There will be a reception for Louise’s mostly-housebound apartment friends at the Holy Infant apartment complex on Friday afternoon, the 16^th, but there will be no church reception, nor visitation.