Johnny Jo “Tink” Russo passed away peacefully on Tuesday, February 28, 2023, at the age of 96. She lived a full and joyous life filled with love, laughter, and a deep faith in God and the goodness in people.
Tink was born in the oil field town of Harrold outside of Vernon, Texas, in December of 1926. She grew up in Paris, Texas surrounded by her parents, Bill and Mollie Jamar, four sisters and two brothers. In 1945, she met and married the love of her life, A.W. Russo. Theirs was truly a love story. She was eighteen and a small town girl, and he was an Italian, a G.I. and from New York. Meeting at a USO dance, they married six months later. Although most thought that it would never last, they were together seventy-one years. A.W.’s military service took them to Germany and to several locations throughout the U.S.
Tink, a nickname her father gave her, was a loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. If A.W. was the heart of the family, Tink was the foundation. Because A.W. was a career officer in the United States Army, Tink was left to take care of the home and children while he was away on assignments. She was a strong, independent woman ahead of her time. A child of the Great Depression, she never forgot her roots and always championed the underdog. She loved to garden and always said in another life she would have owned her own nursery. She was a wonderful cook and many people in Paris have had the opportunity to enjoy her spaghetti dinners. An avid football fan, she rarely missed a Cowboys game. She was a member of Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church, the church’s Alter Society, the Paris High School Wildcat Club, St. Joseph Hospital Woman’s Auxiliary, and the Lamar County Democratic Party. In later years, she became a member of Prince of Peace Catholic Community in Plano, Texas.
Together, Tink and A.W. reared three children and endured the pain of losing one son. Tink is survived by son, Bill Russo and wife, Sharon; daughter, Kim Ramos and husband, Greg; daughter, Gina Burnum and husband, John; grandchildren, Jessica Moss and husband, Kris, Jordan Paz and husband, Manny, Danny Ramos and wife, Erin and Daniel Burnum; great-grandchildren, Oliver Paz, Owen Paz and Mila Moss.
Tink was preceded in death by her husband, A.W; her parents, Bill and Mollie Jamar, son, Kimbal; brothers, Robert and Jack Jamar; sisters, Patsy Jamar, Pauline Carter, Billie Blankinship, and Mary Hilyer.
The Rosary will be recited at 7:00 PM on Monday, March 6 with visitation to follow at Fry Gibbs Funeral Home. Funeral Mass will be Tuesday, 11:00 AM, March 7th at Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church. Interment to follow at Rockford Cemetery.
The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Rockford Cemetery Perpetual Care Fund, 2335 Church Street, Paris Texas 75460 or to the St. Vincent De Paul Society in care of Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church, 3300 Clarksville Street, Paris TX 75460
