![Blackall Santa Gertrudis breeder Terry Russell. Picture: Supplied Blackall Santa Gertrudis breeder Terry Russell. Picture: Supplied](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/88uitQDCBZnXA8enwGJ5Zd/0d00a7a0-b56c-4439-94a2-6970ee915407.jpg/r0_35_1200_712_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
A pioneer of the Santa Gertrudis breed in western Queensland, Terry Russell passed away peacefully at his property east of Blackall on Saturday.
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Terry was 94 when he died, and had his wish of living out his days at his home at Swan Hill.
It was where he grew up after he was born at the Blackall Hospital on May 22, 1930.
In the words of one of his 17 grandchildren, Alexa Russell, Swan Hill was only ever owned by the Russell family, having been drawn by Terry's father William Lindsay Russell following World War I, and was a place he had a strong connection to.
She remembers him as a strong and determined personality, which her father Cam said was personified by his wish to not end his days in a nursing home.
"His mind was unbelievable - it was better than yours and mine," he said.
Terry married Jacqueline Sweeney in February 1953 and together they established the Swan Hill Santa Gertrudis stud in 1960, registered as stud 76, using King Ranch genetics and developed with predominately Yarrawonga bloodlines.
The first Santa Gertrudis cows arrived at Swan Hill on Melbourne Cup day.
At the time, the Blackall-Tambo district was regarded as purely Merino sheep breeding country, and the cattle that were in the area were Shorthorn or Hereford breeds.
The Russells' decision to go into Santa Gertrudis paid off when they were recognised as both a successful crossbreed and purebred in their own right.
The first on-property auction sale was held in June 1969 with 39 bulls and 20 heifers on offer, and fellow Blackall Santa Gertrudis breeder Liz Allen remembers subsequent sales as a spectacle not to be missed.
"Terry and Jacqueline were great friends of my parents - I have fond memories of flying down from Longreach to visit them when I was young," she said.
"I've known Terry as long as I can remember, even before we got into Santa Gertrudis.
"He was a great mentor to me, when I was asking what you look for in an animal."
She also remembers Terry moving to Brisbane for a time, and how the pair, each with a love of horse racing, would study the form guide together.
"One of our (Forest Park) early influential sires was a Swan Hill bull and you can see his influence still coming through," she said.
"I remember Terry's focus on commercial relevance - he was a very astute and practical breeder of cattle.
"His bulls would survive and thrive in the toughest of conditions, and were sold far and wide, to a number of states."
Another long-standing Blackall Santa Gertrudis breeder Ian Walker described Terry as a pioneer, recalling that he was one of the first people to breed poll cattle.
Together with the Walker family's annual Cumberland sale at Longreach and the Clark and Whiting sale at Isis Downs, Terry and Jacqueline were the first cattle breeders to offer on-property sales in the west.
"He was always a good people person," Ian said. "He's the last of a generation."
When the Rich family introduced buffel grass to the district in the late 1950s, Terry adopted it with enthusiasm, introducing it to pulled gidyea country with great success.
Santa Gertrudis Breeders Association of Australia president Michael Doering offered his condolences to the Russell family, saying he had very fond memories of Terry from a trip to Argentina and Brazil with him in 2009.
"He was always so interested in what everyone was doing," he said.
"He was always good to have a chat with.
"The Russells have been great stalwarts for the breed in western areas; they did a lot to promote the breed in the early days."
Terry was a type one diabetic for over 60 years.
His wife Jacqueline died in a car accident on March 18, 1985, and two of his children, Ralph and Jenny pre-deceased him, Ralph in 2016, and Jenny in 2019, after a long battle with brain cancer.
He is survived by four of his children, Bill, Suzy, Cam and Scott, 17 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
His funeral is expected to take place next week.