Gordon Russell
May 16, 1933-Nov. 25, 2023
Portola Valley, California
In a room filled with family and classical music, Gordon W Russell, beloved patriarch, philanthropist and humanist died peacefully on November 25 after a short illness. He is survived by his wife, Bettina McAdoo; his son Justin Russell; his stepsons Gregor and Patrick Robertson, and Miles and Anders Pedersen, his sisters Claire Murphy and Elizabeth Bilafer and their families.
Son of Anne and Leonard Russell, Gordon was raised in Arlington, Mass. He learned to skate on Spy Pond and at age 14 sold hot dogs at Fenway Park in Boston where he saw many of the greats, including Jackie Robinson. Gordon was recruited to play hockey at Dartmouth College where he majored in history and was a member of Casque and Gauntlet, Phi Gamma Delta, Newman Club and AFROTC.
After serving in the electronics division of the Air Force, he worked at Sprague Electric in Massachusetts. Gordon was brought to California by Fairchild Semiconductor. He then held leadership roles in several biomedical companies and joined The Capital Group. His Fairchild and Capital Group colleague Don Valentine recruited Gordon to be his first partner at Sequoia Capital, where he developed the healthcare and biotech divisions of the venture capital firm.
After 20 years at Sequoia, Gordon decided he could do more for others in the non-profit sector. His statement that “it is easier to make money than give it away” reflected his commitment to purposeful philanthropy. He focused on causes that reflected his dedication to community needs, including health care, education and environment.
Among his major gifts to his alma mater Dartmouth College were endowments to the Native American Program, an athletic excellence fund, the Dartmouth Center for the Advancement of Learning and an academic chair at the medical school where he served for 10 years as Chair of the Board of Overseers. He also served on the Native American Visiting Committee. For his many contributions to Dartmouth, he received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.
Gordon credited his mother for his love of reading and honored her by creating the Anne A. Russell Trust Fund to support special services and programs for children at the Robbins Library in Arlington. Gordon’s appreciation of literature continued throughout his life and inspired him to co-found the Sun Valley Writers Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, where Gordon had a home. Gordon also served on the boards of the St. Luke’s Wood River (Hospital) Foundation and The Sun Valley Community School.
Closer to home, Gordon served as Chairman of the Board at both the Peninsula Community Foundation and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation where he helped fund and named the Joseph Davis/Esther Clark Pediatric Department and the Hewlett Lee Surgery Center. He also was on the boards of Community Impact and the Carnegie Institute for the Advancement of Teaching. In a nod to his sons’ environmental work, he joined the board and supported the Woodwell Climate Research Center.
No organization captured his heart more than the Ravenswood Family Health Center, the East Palo Alto provider of free or low-cost health care to the uninsured or underinsured. As the only non-community member of the board, Gordon worked with the clinic from its infancy through the building of a new state-of-the-art facility. He named the Pediatric wing after his wife, a pediatrician.
Throughout his life Gordon enjoyed sports, most recently golf and paddling Hawaiian outrigger canoes with the Kawaihae Canoe Club. He indulged his lifelong passion for hockey by buying a minority interest in the San Jose Sharks and attending their games, turning his wife into an enthusiastic fan.
In addition to his extensive philanthropy and community service, Gordon supported a wide array people personally as a mentor, investor, advisor, or wise elder. His door was always open, his counsel was candid and compassionate. A humble but powerful leader whether in the boardroom or around the family table, Gordon always listened carefully to what everyone wanted to contribute before asking the insightful question or cutting to the main issue. He lived by his philosophy—and inspired others—to give of their “time, talent, and treasure.”
Nothing was more important to Gordon than family. He influenced the lives of his boys and large extended family with wisdom and gentle guidance. At the time of his passing, he was looking forward to spending Thanksgiving and Christmas with family and walking hand in hand with his grandson, as he’d done with his five older grandchildren. He was eager to meet his newest granddaughter and spend more time with his great granddaughter.
Gordon lived a full and happy life. He will be remembered for the twinkle in his eye, his warm smile, a ready joke—and most of all for his fierce loyalty and generous, unconditional love. But the real test for him, he said, was “When I ask myself if I have helped make life better for one person that day and the answer is yes, then I have done what my mother would have wanted me to do.”
In lieu of flowers, and in keeping with Gordon’s philanthropic spirit, the family asks that you give to one of the many causes that he supported throughout his life including Ravenswood Family Health Center and the Hawaii Community Foundation.
A celebration of Gordon’s life will be held in the spring.
