Elks Lodge Connection

Several years ago, I met Russ Cochran at our SCV Elks Lodge with a group of friends who regularly meet there. I knew his wife Barbara from appearing with her and Dr. Gene Dorio on their KHTS 1220 AM radio show.

Pauline Harte told me that Russ was a combat medic during the Korean War but when I suggested that he and I create his Veterans Page, he humbly declined.

After learning Russell was afflicted with pneumonia and had passed away I reached out to Barbara to help me convey her husband’s story.

She readily agreed and upon meeting Barbara, she said the only person Russell ever confided with was their granddaughter Shannon Martinez. Shannon’s copious notes gleaned from her grandfather were a great asset in creating this Veterans Page.

The Great Depression
Russell Tingley Cochran was born Easter Sunday, March 27, 1932, in Ontario, California, during America’s devastating Great Depression. Russell was named after New Mexico’s governor Clyde Tingley who was a family friend but Russell loathed the name Tingley.

Regrettably, Russell’s mother was deemed unfit, thus he was hustled into foster care at age eighteen months.

As a ward of the court, he shuffled among three foster homes until age 11, during which time Russell became thoroughly incorrigible running the streets and ditching school.

Finally, Russell began living with an aunt and uncle and as a ward of the court, to his great fortune his judge gave him a violin and paid for music lessons to lure him off the streets.

Remarkably, from age three Russell became an avid reader, and at night he pulled his bed covers over his head to read nightly with a flash light. He was a quick study and quickly took to music, and began singing and playing the saxophone, violin, clarinet and guitar in choirs and symphony orchestras.

140 Intelligence Quotient
Years later after taking a myriad of mental examinations, Russell learned that he possessed a 140 IQ, bordering on genius, though due to his maverick behavior he did not graduate from high school.

For the rest of Russell’s life, he felt self conscious about his childhood and his incredibly high intelligence. Later while serving in the U.S. Army, Russell earned his General Education Diploma (GED).

During his early years, Russell’s interests varied widely including his love for airplanes of which he became a pilot at an early age earning wages as an aircraft mechanic which he simply learned on the job. He also set pins in a bowling alley and earned tips playing violin and guitar at their local pool hall.

Shannon’s notes disclosed that at age 13 Russell was constantly picked on by his older brother until finally Russell had enough. In a fit of rage, Russell told his brother, you mess with me one more time I’ll cut you up and kill you while you sleep. His bullying abruptly ceased.

U.S. Army Volunteer
At age seventeen, the Korean War was about to breakout while Russell was still running the streets but some friends

chose to join the U.S. Army. Realizing he would be drafted the next year and deciding he should remedy his life style, Russell lied about his age and volunteered in the U.S. Army National Guard enlisting September 1, 1950.

After Basic and Advanced Infantry Training, he deployed to Japan for nine months where he became a combat medic. In the dead of 1951’s winter, Russell and his unit were sent to Inchon, Korea, where below freezing temperatures hovered around -22 Degrees. He became an infantry platoon combat medic with the 224^th Infantry Division.

Per Shannon’s notes, Russell revealed during one fierce battle with Chinese troops, a friend was mortally wounded by enemy fire in his femoral artery which Russell managed to apply a tourniquet. But to Russell’s great anguish it was to no avail as his friend had rapidly bled out.

Grit and Determination
After two plus years, Russell’s U.S. Army service ended June 4, 1952, sending him back to his hometown of Ontario, California, where he began furthering his education. Russell stated that his Army experience prepared him to pursue his American dream and it made him a better man.

Thus, with his incredible intelligence, his newfound maturity, grit, and determination, he began chalking up numerous impressive achievements.

While attending Chaffey Junior College in Ontario he soon made the President’s academic list and started teaching fourth grade students. While there, Russell met his first wife and they had a son named Russell T. Cochran, nicknamed Rusty.

After six years, he and his wife were divorced due to irreconcilable differences, which led to a second shortened marriage only because that wife was an extreme spendthrift. They were separated for twenty years until she passed away.

Community Service
In 1973, Russell luckily met Barbara Stearns, who hailed from London, England and experienced Hitler’s infamous blitzkrieg. They fell in love and were married in Las Vegas in 1996, but along the way Russell attended Long Beach State and earned his Doctorate in School Administration from the University of Southern California (USC).

Russell worked in school administration in numerous California communities as a teacher and principal from 1955 through 1992 including twenty four years with our Saugus School District

Beginning in 1972, Russell volunteered in many local organizations such as the Santa Clarita Valley Community Health Council, L.A. County Mental Health, Founder of the COC Symphony Orchestra, Boys and Girls Club Board of Directors, SCV Senior Center Founder, Child and Family Center Board of Directors, Chairman of Newhall Advisory Board for Urban Development, to name a few.

American Dream
Barbara and Russell loved playing golf, traveling to dozens of countries and attending our Elks Lodge festivities and family dinners were especially important.

Naturally, Russell’s hobby building and flying model airplanes for over forty years was a life long joy. Just shy of turning 87 years of age, Russell sadly contracted pneumonia leading him to pass away peacefully at Henry Mayo Hospital on February 27, 2019.

Russell’s last act of kindness was approving Barbara’s generous $10,000 donation to his beloved Senior Center. May God bless you, Russell T. Cochran and thank you for being a great American patriot.

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