Russell Lee Thaxton

Russell L. “23 Chief” Thaxton, 94, of Cross Lanes, passed away Sunday, August 9, 2020. Russell was born on January 31, 1926 in Charleston. He was a son of the late Otis Edward and Ethel Evelyn Thaxton. He was also preceded in death by his loving wife of 69 years, Mary W. Thaxton; son, Dana Thaxton; brother, Ralph Thaxton; and grandson, Jacob Thaxton. Russell served his country in the Army during World War II, and later a member of the American Legion. Russell was employed by Union Carbide 32 years as a laboratory technician and was the last blacksmith of the South Charleston plant when he retired in 1982. He was active in the Little League for about 25 years. He served as an active member of the Volunteer Fire Service with the State of West Virginia for over 65 years, more than 45 years with Tyler Mountain Volunteer Fire Department, and 25 years with Sissonville Volunteer Fire Department. His last 18 years at Tyler Mountain he was the fire chief. He was appointed to the Kanawha County Fire Board by the County Commission, was an honorary member of the Sissonville Volunteer Fire Department and a lifetime member of the West Virginia State Fireman’s Association. For the last 25 years he served on the Legislative Committee of the West Virginia State Fire Association. He received numerous fire service awards. He received the Jefferson Award for outstanding community service. He loved spending time with his family and friends, especially hunting, fishing with his fishing boat, and gardening with his tractor. He will be missed by all who knew and loved him. He is survived by his children, Kristina Riffle (James) of Nitro, Rodney Thaxton (Maliwan) of Tyler Mountain and Jeff Thaxton (Sandy) of Tyler Mountain; grandchildren, Matthew Wade Thaxton, Lora Abernathy (Gary), Elana Novak (Todd), Kevin Kiser (Emily), Lindsay Kiser and Jeremy Thaxton (Annie); and great-grandchildren, Mason Thaxton, Alissa Thaxton, Anna Kiser and Henry Kiser. The funeral service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday August 14, 2020 at Bartlett-Nichols Funeral Home, at 409 Sixth Ave, St. Albans, with Pastor Ronald Thaxton officiating. Burial will follow in Tyler Mountain Memory Gardens, Cross Lanes. Visitation will be Thursday from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the funeral home. A very special thank you to Sandy Thaxton, Beth McClanahan, Katie Shafer, and the staff at CAMC Memorial 5 Front, for their special care of our Dad and our family. Visit Russell’s tribute page at BartlettNicholsFuneralHome.com to share memories, stories and condolences with the family. Bartlett-Nichols Funeral Home, family-owned and located at 409 Sixth Avenue, St. Albans is honored to serve the Thaxton family.

Russell Lee Thaxton

January 31, 1926 - August 9, 2020