Randall Lanier Barron Jr.

Randall Lanier Barron, Jr., “Randy”, passed away on August 28, 2023 only forty-seven days after being diagnosed with cancer. Randy was born on May 10, 1970 to Randall and Marvel Barron in Dublin, Georgia and grew up in Cochran. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics Education from Oral Roberts University in 1992. Randy’s first job was teaching high school math at Broken Arrow Senior High School in Oklahoma where he also coached the Varsity Boys Tennis Team. He earned his MBA in Finance from the Terry College of Business at The University of Georgia in May 1998. Go DAWGS!

He is survived by his wife, Carolyn; children Katherine of Spain, Hannah of New York, and Randall Lanier Barron, III “Lane” of Utah; mother, Marvel Barron of Oklahoma; sister, Michele Blackstad (Dennis) of Oklahoma; brother, David Barron (Michele) of Texas; and eight nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his father, Randall Lanier Barron, Sr.

Randy had a long and successful career working in Finance in the Oil and Gas Industry. He began his career working for Exxon and worked for many years at Southwestern Energy in Houston, TX. His most recent role was Senior Vice President of Strategy and Finance for Diversified Energy Company in Birmingham.

Randy loved his Lord and his family deeply. The best decision he ever made was when he chose to follow Christ as his Lord and Savior. Randy was a member of The Church at Brook Hills and served faithfully in his small group and the ESL ministry. He was very excited to serve on the Stewardship Committee this fall, and he and Carolyn planned to travel to Southeast Asia on a mission trip later this year. They were also looking forward to co-leading a small group.

The second best decision of his life was asking the love of his life, Carolyn Marie Edel, to marry him. He and Carolyn started dating on September 22,1990. Randy proposed April 23, 1991 at Woodward Park in Tulsa, and they were married on May 16, 1992 at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Birmingham, AL.

Randy knew how to make others feel special. He was always interested in people and the things going on in their lives. He lived out his faith in God every day! The love he and Carolyn shared these last 31 years has become stronger especially as each of them grew closer to the Lord.

Randy was a lifelong diehard Georgia football fan. Friends and acquaintances were always surprised by how many GA football stats he knew. One thing, among many, that made Randy love living in Birmingham was how enthusiastically football is celebrated here. Randy was almost as excited as Kirby when Georgia won the National Championship in 2021 and again in 2022.

Randy was a great athlete but drew the line at swimming saying “life is too short to do something I hate”. He loved running and together he and Carolyn ran 11 half marathons as well as dozens of other shorter races. Randy finished the Houston Marathon in Jan 2020 and decided he never needed to run 26.2 miles again. He and Carolyn also loved hiking many trails in and around Birmingham.

Randy and Carolyn lived many places during their marriage including Oklahoma, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas and Alabama. They raised three amazing children together and did a good enough job that they all still love being together. A favorite activity was watching their kids race triathlons and were absolutely their biggest fans. Randy and Carolyn probably ran thousands of miles together including 14 of them in the middle of an ocean on a cruise ship track last September during their 30th anniversary trip. Their adorable and loyal dog, Benji, will sorely miss both running and hiking with Randy. Carolyn and Randy loved to travel and celebrated milestone anniversaries as well as family vacations with trips to Hawaii, Alaska, The Grand Canyon, Jamaica, St. Lucia and Europe. The beach was a favorite for their whole family and the very last vacation Randy took.

The fifty three years of life that God gave Randy were well lived. He will be deeply missed.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests you give to The Church at Brook Hills Global Missions. Please select “Global Offering” as the fund, and your gift will be designated to global missions. https://www.shelbygiving.com/App/Giving/brookhills

A visitation & reception for Randy will be held Saturday, September 2, 2023 from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM at Southern Heritage Funeral Home, 475 Cahaba Valley Road, Pelham, Alabama 35124.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.southernheritagefunerals.com for the Barron family.