PORTLAND – Russell Randall Goddard, 51, of Aquilla Road, Gray, died Sunday, Dec. 2, at Maine Medical Center surrounded by his family and close friends.

He was born in Skowhegan, Oct. 7, 1956, the son of Robert R. Goddard Jr. and Mildred Louise (Morrill) Goddard. He attended schools in Skowhegan and Yarmouth, graduating from Yarmouth High School in 1975. He attended what was then Southern Maine Vocational Technical Institute and the Criminal Justice Academy graduating with a degree in Criminal Justice.

Upon his graduation, Russ worked as a reserve police officer for the town of Yarmouth prior to being hired as a patrol deputy for the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department. He first served as a deputy sheriff in the town of Harpswell, where he lived for several years. He was then promoted to the rank of corporal and was a supervisor working out of the Gray area until his retirement in May 1998. He also owned an ice cream shop in Gray Center for several years. After his retirement, he established Better Way Auto Sales in Gray, which he continued to operate until his death.

He was very active in his community. He held many positions on the board of the Little Sebago Lodges, the association where he lived since 1984, was a substitute teacher and bus driver for SAD 15 for several years. He was very active in the Cumberland Lodge 12 and served as master of the Lodge in 2002. He was also a member of the Boaz Royal Arch Chapter 72.

His special interests and hobbies were his relationships he established with people, whether dealing with them in a business sense or simply socially. He will be remembered for his kindness and caring for others as well as his sense of humor. His great joys were the activities of boating, snowmobiling, fishing, hunting, vehicles, and being with his close friends and family. The encouragement and opportunities he offered to those he came in contact was a great strength of his personality. He enjoyed having family and friends around in the summer for boating events on the lake. He especially enjoyed his Sundays on the lake with his friends.

He is survived by a son, David R.Trafford and his wife, Cheryl, of New Gloucester; a brother, Robert R. Goddard III and his wife, Eileen, of Yarmouth; a sister, Janet Smith-Marconi and her husband, James, of Bowdoin; three nephews, Jason, Eric and Nathaniel; one niece, Suvarna; two great-nephews, Trent and Devon; five grandchildren, Ashley, Beth, Megan, Mikayla and Gavin; one great-grandchild, Janiah; and several cousins.

He was predeceased by his mother, Mildred in 1991; and father, Robert Jr. in 2000.