Russell Ashton Waters was born on January 11, 1936 in Screven County, Georgia. His parents were G. Clifford Waters Jr. and Elizabeth Brown Waters. He graduated from Screven County High School, where he was a straight-A student and an outstanding athlete, earning letters in football, track, basketball, and baseball. He then attended Georgia Tech and played on the Yellow Jackets football team. In 1956 Senator Richard Russell of Georgia nominated Russell for an appointment to the United States Military Academy, and in July he entered West Point as a member of the Class of 1960.
Russell compiled an excellent academic record at West Point, graduating in the top quarter of the class. Because of his high ratings for military aptitude and leadership he was named L-2 company commander his First Class year. However, his classmates, particularly those outside L-2, probably remember him best for his prowess on the fields of friendly strife.
Although the highlight of his athletic career was playing on the storied Army Football Team that was undefeated during the 1958 season, Russell first gained distinction in corps squad track. A member of the Track Team during his plebe, yearling, and cow years, Russell, a formidable sprinter (sometimes described as the fastest cadet at West Point), could run the 100-yard dash in under 10 seconds. A pivotal moment occurred in November 1957 when assistant football coach Chuck Gottfried, who had observed Russell in an indoor track workout, encouraged him to try out for the football team. West Point graduate Mark Beech, author of When Saturday Mattered Most: The Last Golden Season of Army Football, records how Gottfried said, “Russ! I’ve been watching you. Why don’t you come out for spring football?”
Russell quickly passed muster with Army’s legendary coach Earl Blaik, who eventually made him principal backup for his classmate “Lonesome End” Bill Carpenter. Interestingly, Russell played alongside three fellow L-2 starters, halfback and Heisman trophy winner Pete Dawkins, All-American halfback Bob Anderson, and end Don Usry, on what one sportswriter called “the best football team in the country for the best football coach in the country.”
An account of his West Point years must also note a memorable moment that occurred in June 1957. One of his roommates, a fellow Georgian, introduced him to Ann Youngblood, a student at Wesleyan College in Macon, GA. A serious courtship ensued and three years later, June 1960, Russell and Ann were married in a ceremony at Savannah’s historic Wesley Monumental Methodist Church.
Commissioned upon graduation in the Field Artillery, Russell completed both the Field Artillery Officer Basic Course at Fort Sill, OK and the Air Defense Artillery Basic Course at Fort Bliss, TX. He was then assigned to the Sixth Army Air Defense Command, which operated Nike missile sites in the San Francisco Bay region. After serving as a platoon leader with a Nike battery at Lake Chabot, CA, he attended the Army Aviation School at Fort Rucker, AL and qualified as a fixed-wing pilot.
Deploying to South Vietnam in 1964, Russell, now Captain Waters, served with the 73rd Aviation Company. Although the company, equipped with O-1 Bird Dog aircraft, was based at Nha Trang, the platoon that Russell commanded operated primarily out of Pleiku, carrying out aerial surveillance, target acquisition, and convoy escort missions. Howard R. Linscott, a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, who attended aviation school with Russell and served with him in Vietnam, remembered Russell as a forceful and innovative officer, someone who did not hesitate to critique operational plans and propose alternative courses of action.
Upon his return from Vietnam, Russell completed the Field Artillery Officer Advanced Course at Fort Sill before being assigned to the command responsible for air defense in the Baltimore-Washington, DC area. While commanding a Nike site at Edgewood Arsenal, he was called upon to brief Lieutenant General Raymond L. Shoemaker, Deputy Commanding General, Army Air Defense Command. Shoemaker was so impressed by the briefing that he had Russell assigned to Headquarters, ARADCOM, at Ent Air Force Base, CO, where he served as Shoemaker’s aide-de-camp until resigning his commission in 1968.
After leaving the Army, Russell, who always remained close to his Georgia roots, worked for several years as a broker with Merrill Lynch in Savannah. He then served as an administrative assistant to G. Elliott Hagan, U.S. representative from the 1st Congressional District of Georgia, until 1973, when he decided to pursue a career in business in his native Screven County.
Russell held managerial positions in the South Atlantic Galvanizing Corporation and other industries until his retirement. He also played an active role in civic affairs. Especially notable was his service on the board of directors of the Screven County Airport Authority. Calling Russell his “right-hand man,” board chairman Dewey Morgan emphasized his progressive outlook on matters that came before the board. He was always “one step ahead” of other board members when considering problems such as environmental issues.
Russell was an active member of the Sylvania First Baptist Church and the Briar Creek Country Club. An avid golfer, he maintained an enviable reputation on the links until the very eve of his death.
Russell was survived by his wife, Ann; three sons: Russell, Michael, and Brett; two grandchildren, and one great granddaughter. He was also survived by his brother, Lieutenant Colonel George D. Waters ’53, U.S. Army (Retired). He was predeceased by his parents and his brother Robert, a superb athlete who played quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers.
— Paul L. Miles ’60