Leslie Russell Ford

Asheville, NC – Leslie Russell Ford, 48, died Monday, October 15, 2007, at the John F. Keever Solace Center following a long illness. She was the daughter of Diane Leslie Russell and William S. Russell of the home, 426 Vanderbilt Road, Asheville. She was born in Greeneville, Tenn., in 1959 and moved to Asheville with her family in 1972. Leslie was a student at Asheville Country Day School and attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville and Warren Wilson College. From Asheville, she moved to Atlanta, where she became a Certified Medical Assistant and worked in an OBGyn practice for two years. With her former husband, the late Lawrence Ford, she lived in Holmes Beach, Fla., where she was city clerk for the Town of Holmes Beach. She returned to Asheville to make her home with her parents when she became ill in 1997. She is survived by her parents, her brother, Ben Russell of Evansville, Ind., and his wife, Kathy, and their daughter, Caroline; and her sister, Jane Russell Herzog of Pasadena, Calif., and her husband, Mark, and their son, Henry, and daughter Wallis. Leslie loved animals and is survived by her beloved teacup poodle, Annie. A strong supporter of the Christian Children’s Fund, she has been a foster parent to Jorge Seifu, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for many years. The Cathedral of All Souls, Biltmore Village, declared September 26 a holy day for Leslie, a longtime member. A memorial service will be at in Asheville at All Souls on Saturday, October 20 at 11:00 a.m. The family will greet friends at a reception in the cathedral’s Zabriskie Parish Hall following the service. Memorials may be made to the John F. Keever Solace Center, PO Box 25338, Asheville, NC 28813 or The Cathedral of All Souls, 9 Swan St., Asheville, NC 28803.