Prior to joining Whanganui and Partners he was a general manager of Saatchi and Saatchi in Wellington, and had served as a director for Prospace Design since 2011.
Russell also worked in governance and management roles for the likes of NZ Dairy Foods before it became Fonterra, Lion Nathan, the New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority and Wellington City Council.
Before offering his services to Whanganui and Partners, Russell played a big part in facilitating, creating and introducing the city's "Whanganui - All You Need (and then some)" branding.
Fothergill said it was Russell's experience that brought something special to the boardroom table, and especially when it came to developing brand guidelines for the organisation to work toward.
"He was a key player in terms of the makeup of the board, he lived and breathed it. When it came to branding he was invaluable, both at governance level but also working with the team by getting a focus on marketing."
Fothergill said Jono was well liked and always willing to help out and lend advice.
"We're a governance board so we are hands-off, but when we have specific areas of experience or skills then we engage with the team and work for them, and Jono was very, very good at that.
"He was a good allrounder, he certainly brought a very good balanced perspective to everything we discussed in the boardroom.
Myles Fothergill ... "we will miss him terribly."
"If Jono had something to say, it was always to add value to it. He's not one of these people who just talked for the sake of it."
Russell was well liked in the business community, and was described as a warm character to be around.
"He just always smiled, he was always happy and positive about things, and just had a positive spin on everything," Fothergill said.
"He was fairly unassuming so unless you knew him well, a lot of people wouldn't have really realised the value he added to Whanganui & Partners, and indeed the community itself in terms of economic development."
Former Whanganui mayor Annette Main said she worked closely with Russell in 2016, and that the two shared strong interest in music.
"He brought good sense and experience from working overseas in China.
"That was very valuable coming back to work in Whanganui. I believe we tend to look without that outside influence sometimes and it can be a huge help when you get someone like Jonathan coming back to town, they bring a huge amount of experience.
"I'm really sorry we've lost him, he had so much more to give" she said.
Fothergill said he had spoken to Russell about standing for another term as board member because of the experience he brought to the table, and the great relationships he had with everyone at the organisation.
Jonathan Russell.
"He became a very good friend of us all, and I certainly had huge amount of respect for him.
"He'll be sorely missed for sure, both in a professional and personal capacity."
Jonathan Russell's funeral service will be held at Christ Church and Community Centre, 243 Wicksteed St, Whanganui at 3pm on Thursday.
