Earl Russell Schwers

Earl Russell "Russ" Schwers, Jr. was called to the Lord on Tuesday, October 15, 2019.  Russ had accepted The Lord and was baptized and confirmed into the Catholic faith. Russ was born in 1932 in St. Louis, MO to Emeryld and Earl Schwers.  After his mother's death, the family moved to Albuquerque in 1948. There he graduated from Albuquerque High School in 1950, joining the Navy that same year where he served three years, most of which were aboard the USS Iowa.  He received a distinguished service award as a result of his actions in the Korean Conflict.  He then returned to Albuquerque where he attended the University of New Mexico and went to work for his dad in the Albuquerque Hinkle’s department store selling shoes. It was there he met his future wife, Elaine Florence Timms, daughter of Norman and Pauline Timms of Albuquerque.  They married in 1953 and Russ soon signed on as an accountant at ACF Industries, followed by a move to Albuquerque Public Schools. He headed up the budget and finance departments as Assistant Superintendent, retiring after more than 22 distinguished years of service.

Russ had an unusually keen sense of humor as attested by the widely recognized pseudo initials (T. E. A.) he often used to sign off on internal APS documents.  The humor was evident in the way he metaphorically noted his first name as an identifier which was "The Earl of Accounting."  His sports passion was his old hometown baseball team, the St. Louis Cardinals.  He loved watching fast paced auto racing, visiting with his family and friends, and playing cards with his co-workers which continued throughout his retirement.

Russ was preceded in death by his parents and his loving wife, Elaine after 62 wonderful years of marriage.  He is survived by his sons, Earl III, (wife, Liz), Mark (wife, Sandy), and Norman (wife, Laurie); his grandchildren, Scott Schwers, David Schwers (wife, Carole), Clayton Schwers, and Kristina Schwers Metge (her husband, Charles); and  great-grandchildren, Stacy Schwers Ahlgrim, Scott Schwers, Jr, Wade Schwers, David Schwers Jr, Kathleen Schwers, Isabelle Schwers, Sailor Metge, Charlie Metge, and Paisley Metge. He is also survived by his brother, John Schwers of Houston, Texas and his wife, Linda, and their sons, Gary and Jeff (wife, Susan) and family.

A Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, November 2, 2019, 10:30 a.m., at Church of the Incarnation, 2309 Monterrey Road NE in Rio Rancho. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a favorite charity of choice.