Russell David Mcmahan

Russell David McMahan was born to Russell Bowman McMahan (b. 1896) and Katherine Shaffer McMahan (b. 1900) on November 18, 1928, in Indianapolis, Indiana. He passed away on December 11, 2022, at the age of 94, in Macon, Georgia.

He graduated from Thomas Carr Howe High School in Indianapolis in 1946. Upon his graduation, he immediately enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, serving during World War II, and was honorably discharged in 1948. Soon afterward he enrolled in Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana. He went on to begin his career in aviation. He earned his pilot’s license and became a flight instructor. At the same time, he was hired by a regional airline carrier, Lake Central Airlines, and eventually became the carrier’s station manager at O’Hare Airport in Chicago and then at Weir Cook Airport in Indianapolis. Taking note of his managerial skill, the Indianapolis Airport Authority recruited him to become the Director of Buildings at, what had by that time become, Indianapolis International Airport. During those years after a rigorous course of study and writing, he was admitted into the prestigious professional society of the American Association of Airport Executives. Finally, in recognition of his service and in honor of his retirement, Mayor Stephen Goldsmith proclaimed August 28, 1992, to be David McMahan Day in the city of Indianapolis.

On January 1, 1955, he married Sally Ann Dawson of Marion, Ohio. On January 31, 1956, Sally and Dave welcomed their “surprise” twins, Craig Thomas and Carol Lynn, into their hearts and home. Dave and Sally built a very happy life together of nearly 68 years, filled with many joyful moments of family, church, sports and travel. And there were also times of great heartache, especially the extended illness and eventual death of Carol at age 39. Their life together culminated in the last twenty months of Dave’s declining health and Sally’s heroic and loving care.

Dave was a man of high adventure and deep faith. Twice, he rode his “armored” Honda 750 motorcycle 3,800 miles across the country from Indianapolis to Anchorage, Alaska, which included 1,100 miles of gravel on the unpaved AlCan Highway. He walked away from an airplane crash, canoed the Boundary Waters and explored shipwrecks in Lake Michigan. Dave was not, however, simply a free spirit wrapped in wanderlust; he was a man of eager devotion, passionately dedicated to nurturing the inner spirit of a robust faith that would become the true legacy of his life. Every day of his life was shaped around and shaped by earnest prayer and the reading of and reflection upon Scripture. He served as a Bible teacher and a Deacon in every church he attended in his adult life. He truly was a “good and faithful servant,” who has now entered into the joy of his Master.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Russell and Katherine McMahan, and his daughter, Carol McMahan. He is survived by his wife, Sally, his son, Craig (Jennifer), his grandchildren, Nathan (Emily), Hannah (Tim), Rebekah and Jordan, his great grandchildren, Silas, Luke and Ruthie, his brother, Thom, and his sister, Darlene and a host of extended family members.

On Saturday, December 17, there will be a burial service at 10:00 AM in the West Newton Cemetery (West Newton, IN). A memorial service will follow at 11:30 AM at the First Baptist Church (Plainfield, IN). The family will greet friends before the memorial service. Hart’s Mortuary of Macon, Georgia, and Flanner and Buchanan Decatur Township of Indianapolis, Indiana, are sharing responsibility of services to the family.

A second memorial service in celebration of Dave’s life will take place in Macon after the holidays.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be made to Mercer On Mission (https://mom.mercer.edu/news/ ), an international service program through Mercer University. Gifts may be given online or sent to Dr. Craig McMahan, Newton Chapel, Mercer University, 1501 Mercer University Drive, Macon, GA, 31207. To sign the online guest book and share your thoughts and memories with the McMahan family you are invited to go to www.flannerbuchanan.com