Russell D. Buck

Sturbridge - Russell D. Buck, 53, died Tuesday, October 3, 2017 at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, MA after a long illness.

He leaves his wife, Michelle (Rapp) Buck, 49, of Sturbridge; his sons Adam R. Buck, 22, and Jonathan E. Buck, 20, of Sturbridge; his mother Sylvia G. Buck, of Warren; his brother, Kenneth J. Buck, 55, and his wife Angela Buck of Tyngsboro; nephews Eric and Karl Tomlinson, and niece Laura Tomlinson of Wilbraham; nieces Addison and Kaitlyn Ducharme of Springfield; two aunts, and many cousins.

He was the son of Sylvia G. (Walker) Buck and the late Robert A. Buck of Warren, MA. He was a direct descendant of Col. Solomon Keyes, one of the first European settlers of Warren (formerly known as Western).

Russ worked as a parts manager in the forklift industry for Summit Handling, Inc., and loved the challenges of his job. His ebullient and outgoing personality led him to make friends easily and often. Like his father, he loved social interactions, surrounded by people, telling stories and “working the room” in the midst of constant conversation. He loved spending time at the family cottage on the Maine coast; reading books; attending fires and researching earthquakes and other natural disasters; attending concerts with his sons; photography; spending time with his close friends Seth and Cathy Blackwell of Warren; and most of all sharing time with his family.

He was an avid railroad fan and N scale modeler, taking after his father.  He was interested in anything and everything to do with his favorite railroad, the Milwaukee Railroad, and its electrified division across Montana and Idaho. In the 1980s, he organized the first N-Trak N scale modular train layout at the Big Railroad Hobby Show sponsored annually by the Amherst Railway Society at the Big E fairgrounds in Springfield. For many years, he helped out at his father’s hobby store, Tucker’s Hobbies, in Warren.

Calling hours for Russell will be held on Saturday, October 7, 2017 from 4 to 6 PM in the Varnum Funeral Home, Inc., 43 East Main St., in West Brookfield.  Burial will be held privately in Pine Grove Cemetery in Warren.  Flowers may be sent or memorial donations may be made to the American Heart Association, P.O. Box 417005, Boston, MA 02241.

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