June 15, 1956 — September 20, 2020
Brian T. Russo entered eternal life on September 20, 2020 at the age of 64. Brian was born on June 15, 1956 in Mt. Vernon, New York to Felix Russo and Lucille Darretta. He attended Broward Community College in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In 1975, he joined the United States Army and graduated from the Military Police School in Fort Gordon, Georgia. He worked as an area manager with Phillips-Van Heusen Company.
Brian had a passion for traveling around the world. He liked to observe people and places and embraced cultural differences while traveling. One of his favorite places was Thailand, where his longtime partner is from. Brian loved Thai people but most of all he loved Thai food. Brian liked to make new friends and taught everyone that if they are from another country and you have trouble understanding them then you should learn to listen. You should try to speak to them in their languages. And if the boy laughs at you it is OK, "Be a boy and laugh with him." He would go to AA meetings with love in his hands, came back with empty hands, but full of stories to tell and inspire you. We were blessed to learn many valuable lessons from him, among them: never be afraid to curse out loud, to laugh out loud, and to love out loud. If you are not good at giving a blow job then you'd better be good at blowing kisses or learn before you cry until you can't blow your nose. Because at the end it's all about loving one another.
Brian is survived by his partner, Jack; his longtime friends, John, Andrew, and Katie; his sisters, Valerie, Eileen, and Wanda; his mother, Lucille; his granddaughters, Angelina, and Kayley; and his loved ones, James, Cindy, and Tammy. He is predeceased by his brother, Stephen; his son, Michael. A private celebration of life took place October 10 at the National AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Please consider a tribute by making a donation to www.sfspca.org
Help keep the Bay Area Reporter going in these tough times. To support local, independent, LGBTQ journalism, consider becoming a BAR member.