On Thursday, July 10, beginning at 5 p.m., the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame opened its doors to the family, friends, colleagues, students, and loved ones of the late educator and community member Ellen Howe Russell.

Within the hour, the museum’s main room was filled wall to wall as arriving guests mingled, embraced, and reminisced. The service began with a short but heartfelt prayer delivered by Joel Carter, pastor of First United Methodist Church at the time of her recent passing. Following the invocation, Russell’s eldest child, Mary Scott Ranger, took the stage, welcoming the crowd and introducing the immediate family.

Ranger expressed the family’s deep appreciation for the outpouring of love and support they’d received so far and offered a quick but touching tribute to the woman at the heart of so many lives and memories. “E nurtured so many,” Ranger remarked in closing. “And somehow, even though she’s gone, she continues to do so. That’s just who she was.”

Far from the quiet solemnity of a typical memorial, Russell’s service was marked by the echo of laughter and shared stories, a true “celebration of life.”  Although the event was scheduled to end by 7 p.m., guests lingered well into the night, reluctant to say goodbye to the warmth and remembrance that continued to fill the space that evening. 

Ellen lived a life rooted in care and connection inside and outside the classroom. Whether she was tending her garden, entertaining guests, serving at her church, or doting on her grandchildren, she found joy and purpose in nurturing others. That legacy lives on in every life she’s touched and will continue to bloom in the hearts of those she’s left behind.