April Theresa Hyden Russell

June 8, 1972 – December 13, 2015 Resident of Aptos Services will be on January 10th in Santa Cruz, for April Russell who passed away at her Aptos home following a 9 month battle with a rare ovarian cancer. Her loving family was at her bedside when she passed. Born in Mountain View, California, she was 43 years old. April received her Bachelor's Degree in Political Science, with a minor in Administration of Justice, from San Jose State University. She worked as a Human Resources Director with Symmetricom Inc, and at the time of her death was the Global Human Resource Director with ServiceNow. Her career as a human resource professional spanned over 20 years, and she was very proud of the fact that she was representing employees in 26 countries. April leaves many dear friends and colleagues whose lifelong relationships she lovingly treasured. She will be forever remembered as a loving wife, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend, who loved people, and received great joy in helping her friends, family and colleagues, with care and compassion. She loved to travel to distant places, and enjoyed sharing these experiences with her husband and family. A lover of animals, she enjoyed training and entering competitions with her beloved dogs, thought of and treated as her children. She is survived by her husband of 21 years, Sheldon Russell, her mother and father, Roxanne and Rand Hyden; her paternal grandfather, Calvin Hyden; brother and sister-in-law, Evan and Stephanie Hyden; her sister and brother-in-law, Lisa and Joey Rivera; and brother, Alex Hyden. April also leaves her nephew, Joe Rivera III, and her much-loved canines, April's "Atta" Girl of Aptos and Seaside's "Bella" of the Ball. Friends and family will say farewell to April in a ceremony to be held on Sunday January 10, 2016 at Benito and Azzaro Pacific Gardens Chapel in Santa Cruz, at 3:00pm. Any kind acts of charity can be made in her memory to Phase One Foundation. Please visit www.pacificgardenschapel.com to share your thoughts and reflections with her family.