William "Rus" Richard Moore

William Richard "Rus" Moore, 79, of Lubbock, Texas passed away December 30, 2022 after a fierce battle with dementia and associated complications. Rus was born October 22, 1943, in Ruston, Louisiana, to W.J. (Billy) and June Moore. He grew up on the family's dairy farm and attended A. E. Phillips and Ruston High School. After graduation from high school he continued his education at Louisiana Tech and was a member of Sigma Nu. Rus loved learning new things and went on to receive a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Oklahoma State University, a Masters of Public Health from the University of Minnesota and a Masters in Political Science from Texas Tech University. Rus served in the Army during the Vietnam era and was stationed in Rochester, New York. He worked for a while on his family's dairy farm in Ruston and in a veterinary clinic in Little Rock, Arkansas. He returned to military service in the Air Force in 1974 and continued until he retired as a Major in 1992. His assignments included Albuquerque, New Mexico; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Panama; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Spain; and Lubbock, Texas. For a time he was the base veterinarian at his assigned stations but changed to being the Chief of Environmental Health after a restructuring of the Air Force's operations. After his retirement from the Air Force, Rus worked for South Plains College in their Continuing Education Program. Rus and Cheryl met at Oklahoma State University and were married January 27th, 1968. They had 3 children, Jay Gershon, Amber Leigh(who passed away at the age of 5 days old), and Amanda Marie. One of Rus' greatest joys was to be with his family and take them camping and traveling, celebrate holidays, and teach them things. He loved to sing and play his guitar. He also loved to sing in the church choir and with his various choruses and quartets of barbershop music. He was a member of the barbershop society for almost 50 years. It was a great source of joy and friendship. He cherished being with his long time friends, Barry and Randy Afeman and going camping and fishing and motorcycle riding with them. Jay and Amanda have given him 5 grandchildren to cherish and enjoy. His heart was always full of love and pride for them. Rus was preceded in death by his infant daughter, Amber, and his father and mother, Billy and June Moore. He is survived by loved ones including his wife, Cheryl Gaston Moore; son, Jay Moore, and his wife, Shirley Lin, of Annapolis, Maryland; daughter and son-in-law, Amanda and John Fitzgerald of Lubbock, Texas; his sisters and their families, Nelle and Charlie Hill of Houston, Texas, and Ellen Rogers of Shreveport, Louisiana and her husband, Gavin Walsh, of Sligo, Ireland, 5 nephews and 1 niece and their families and a host of cousins and friends. Rus was a man of great intelligence, honor, duty, loyalty, love, and generosity. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him. A memorial service will be held at 2:00 pm Saturday, January 14 at Westmont Christian Church, Lubbock, Texas with a reception to follow. The family suggests donations to Wounded Warriors, Alzheimer's research/care, or the local food bank or charity of choice.

William "Rus" Richard Moore

October 22, 1943 - December 30, 2022