Russell A. Lombardy
December 26,  1918 - December 30, 2007
Russell A. Lombardy of Longmont passed away Sunday, Dec. 30, 2007, at Applewood  Living Center,.He was 89.
Lum,  as he was known to his friends, was born on December 26, 1918, in  Washington, DC to Charles and Louise Lombardy.
Mr. Lombardy  attended public schools in Washington, D.C., and graduated from Eastern High School in 1938, where he was an outstanding athlete in a number of sports. He earned his undergraduate degree from High Point College in High Point, NC,  where he attended on an athletic scholarship and graduating Cum Laude in 1945.He then earned a Masters of Education degree from the University of Maryland in  1946.
Mr. Lombardy  served in the United States Army during WWII as a combat tank officer, reaching  the rank of Captain and receiving a Bronze Star and the Purple Heart in the  European theater.
Mr. Lombardy's  coaching career spanned a period of eighteen years. In 1946 he was Freshman  Basketball Coach at the University of Maryland. He was the Assistant Basketball  Coach at McKinley Tech from 1947 to 1950, and head Basketball Coach and Golf  Coach at Anacostia High School from 1951 through 1964, where he coached some of  the finest athletes and most outstanding teams in the Interhigh League.
Mr. Lombardy left  the coaching ranks in 1965 upon moving into school administration, spending over  a dozen years as the Principal of Anacostia High School.He maintained a  lifelong love of sports and relished the memories of his days at Anacostia. His  passion for education, particularly as it applies to the inner city, and social  justice, remained strong throughout his long life.
Mr. Lombardy spent  some of his favorite days in retirement playing golf and working on the weekends  as a Starter at Twin Shields Golf Course in Maryland.
Russell married  Hazel V. Gibson in 1943. She preceded him in death. He then married Pearl I.  Goodwin in 1964. She has also preceded him in death.
He was an active  member of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Clinton, Maryland.
He is survived by  his son Russ Lombardy of Longmont, Colorado, daughters Diane Beckham of Berwyn  Heights, MD, and Debbie Gaspar of Laytonsville, MD, and five grandchildren:  Kelly and John Beckham, Stephen Gaspar, Nessa Bresnahan, and Sophia Lombardy. He is also survived by his sister, Helen Kneeland of Silver Spring, Maryland.
Mass of  the Resurrection will be held at 10:30am Wed., Jan. 23, 2008 at St. John the  Evangelist Catholic Church in Clinton, MD.