Friends, family, colleagues and elected officials gathered in Brooklyn on Tuesday to celebrate the life and legacy of beloved NY1 anchor Ruschell Boone. 

Ruschell, an Emmy-award winning journalist and our beloved colleague here at NY1, died on Sept. 3 because of complications related to pancreatic cancer. She was 48. 

Speaking at her memorial service at the Christian Cultural Center in East New York Tuesday afternoon, New York State Attorney General Letitia James remembered Ruschell as a “brilliant journalist” and an “incredible storyteller.” 

“Ruschell Boone never allowed cancer to steal her joy. She never allowed cancer to temper her generous soul. And she never allowed cancer to break her loving spirit,” James said. “And her understanding of this city, its communities and its people truly made her a New York City treasure.” 

In his own eulogy, Mayor Eric Adams recalled Ruschell’s “smile, that laughter, the uniqueness of how she presented herself.” 

“Energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be transformed,” the mayor said, adding that if that is true, “then she’s not gone.”

For 21 years, Ruschell was a member of NY1’s staff, as well as a friend and mentor to many. For someone who lived and breathed the five boroughs, NY1 was a perfect match, and she joined the station in 2002 as our Queens reporter. 

Ruschell “told critical stories about Queens with integrity and with heart,” City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams said at the memorial service. 

“She flawlessly presented humanity in a way that only she could. Her personality, her sense of humor, her empathy and her storytelling always drew you in, not just as a viewer, but as a subject,” the council speaker said. 

“Each and every one of you sitting here are stark reminders of how much Ruschell Boone meant to this city. How she brought us together like no one else could,” Queens Borough President Donovan Richards added. “And I want you to know that I don’t come here simply to mourn as the borough president of Queens. I came here to honor the big sister I never had.” 

After nearly two decades of telling the news from the street, Ruschell moved to the anchor desk in 2021, where she brought New Yorkers the latest each day at noon on News All Day, a show that highlighted her love of community, her passion for breaking news and her understanding of the way New Yorkers live.  

Despite her long list of awards and accolades, Ruschell was always most focused on her family, including her mother, her siblings, her husband Todd and her two sons, Carter and Jackson. Todd and Ruschell met at NY1 and married on Sept. 24, 2005. 

Speaking at her service on Tuesday, Todd said Ruschell “gave as much as she could to everyone else.” 

“I’m sorry that she’s not here to witness all of this in her physical form, but she is still here. She’s reflected in all of you — her brothers, her kids. And my tears are tears of selfishness, that I miss her,” he said. 

“But she was happy. She was strong. And I’m happy for her. She knew she was loved. She loved everyone,” he added. “And we are all better for having known her.”