Joseph Jeffery Russell Lebel

It is with deep sorrow we mourn the passing of Joseph Jeffery (“Russ”) LeBel. Born December 27 1946 to Helen Scott and Alfred LeBel in St. Francis, Maine. He passed away August 27, 2020 after fighting a long battle with lung cancer at age 73. He will be lovingly remembered by his wife Susan LeBel of 40 years, his children Amber Hahn, Christopher LeBel and daughter in-law Denise LeBel, Candice LeBel, Nicollette Allen and son in-law Francis Allen, his sister Sue Loiko and brother in-law Bill Loiko. He is also adored by 11 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren along with sister in-laws and brother in-laws and nieces and nephews. He lived in Fort Kent Maine and moved to South Meriden Connecticut as an adolescent where he explored his passion for cars and mechanics. He joined the Air Force in December 1963 and served 13 months in Vietnam. Russ was a mechanic on jet airplanes and received a Citation for Excellence for maintaining F-4 Phantom Jets. After being Honorably Discharged in 1965, he pursued multiple service management roles where he led and trained others in mechanics. His last job of 18 years before retiring was a Fleet Manager for a Road Building Company in Sarasota.

One of his passions was NASCAR Racing. At the age of 60 he had the Ultimate Racecar Driver Experience at 126 mph, a great thrill of his lifetime along with a trip to France where he also the thrill of driving “Peugeot” on a road course.

He will always be known for his wonderful sense of humor and his creative nicknames for everyone. He certainly loved his sweets especially his wife’s homemade peanut butter fudge, whose recipe was passed down from his mom and would hide it so he could have it all for himself. He also loved his scratch off tickets and was always hoping to win big and was pretty lucky at times. He was a wonderful husband, father, brother, uncle and grandfather. He enjoyed taking his daughter to father/daughter Girl Scout dances also his granddaughter to her school dances as well and always helping his children in every way possible. He was such a strong, courageous person in his battle with cancer and strived to “beat it” and never gave up no matter how bad he felt. He also said his wife was his “hero” but she felt he was the “hero”.

He will be missed by all with his funny sayings and making everyone laugh.

Graveside Service will be held 12:30 pm, Friday, September 18, 2020 at the Sarasota National Cemetery in Sarasota, FL with military honors.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 3:00 PM, Saturday, September 19, 2020 from the Event Center of Groover Funeral Home at Mansion Memorial Park in Ellenton, FL. Family will receive friends starting at 2 pm until the hour of service.

The Visitation and Memorial Service will be livestreamed on Facebook.

Please visit Groover Funeral Home Facebook page to see the livestream.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Lung Cancer Society in Russ's honor.