Obituary of Russell J. Colton

Russell James Coltonof Vestal Russell James Colton, 71, passed away suddenly on May 16, 2008 at his home in Vestal, N.Y. Mr. Colton was born on January 23, 1937 in Youngstown, Ohio, to Esther and Ralph Colton. He obtained a Bachelor of Music degree from Youngstown State University in 1959 and a Master of Music degree from Indiana University in 1961. He served in the US Army in 1962, stationed in South Korea. He and his former wife, Martha Colton, raised two daughters and one son. Mr. Colton moved to Binghamton in 1963 and was heavily involved in local music as a teacher in the Binghamton City School District, a violist in the BC Pops and Binghamton Philharmonic, and served as the conductor and founder of the Jr. Youth Symphony for 41 years. He loved bowling in his spare time. Mr. Colton is survived by his two daughters, Terry Tracz and her husband, Marc, Coventry, Conn., and Carol Driggs and her husband, David, Golden, Colo.; his son, Jim Colton and his wife, Alexa, West Palm Beach, Fla.; his former wife, Martha Colton, Golden, Colo.; and his four grandchildren, Derek Driggs, Devin Driggs, Nicholas Colton and Joseph Colton. At Russell's request, there will be no funeral service. The family will receive friends at the Coleman & Daniels Funeral Home, Inc., 300 E. Main St., Endicott, Wednesday, May 21, 2008, from 6 to 8 p.m. Burial will be at the family's convenience in Vestal Hills Memorial Park. His family requests that, in lieu of flowers, contributions in Russell's memory are sent to the Niemann-Pick Foundation, a disease his grandson Joseph suffers from, P.O. Box 49, 401 Madison Ave. Suite B, Ft. Atkinson, Wis. 53538 or the Binghamton Philharmonic, 31 Front St., Binghamton, N.Y. 13905, or the Binghamton Youth Symphony, PO Box 1235, Binghamton, N.Y.