Randall Karl Berning

Randall Karl Berning JD, LLM, age 76, born 13 April 1950 to Senator Karl Ives Berning and Alpha “Mickie” (Mikkelsen) in Highland Park, Illinois, passed into the hands of our Lord Jesus Christ on 22 July 2026 at home in Naples, FL. Cherished, loved, and dearly missed Randall is survived by his wife Carol Ann (Bublitz), son Matthew of Washington DC, brother Grant (Beverly) of Raleigh NC, sister Penny (Larry) Schafer of Sun City Center FL, and Niece Karmin (Tom) Hansen, and nephews Andrew (Lauren) Schafer and Bryan (Robin) Berning along with seven grand nieces and nephews. Randall is preceded to heaven by his Mother and Father.

Randall, AKA Randy, grew up in Deerfield, IL and enjoyed a full and wonderful childhood with loving family and friends on Rosemary Terrace. In childhood he particularly loved riding his horse Scout. From a young age Randy was steeped in public service life given his Father’s long status as an elected official, joining and aiding in many campaigns and events and sharing in the love and devotion to God, Home, and Country. Though life drew him away from Illinois he maintained ties with the community.

A 1968 graduate of Deerfield High School, Randy earned his BA at University of Illinois in 1973 and spent a semester in Washington DC working in the Nixon Administration on the transition to an all-volunteer military force.  Following college, Randall worked and saved to take an epic journey to Africa, Greece, and Italy to immerse himself in the world’s wonders and history. Next was pursuing a law degree in San Francisco, spending the first two years simultaneously working full-time with the American Cancer Society. In 1977 he returned to Illinois, passed the Bar, and was soon after sworn in as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Illinois. 1977 is also when he met his bride-to-be, Carol, in the Chicago Loop, in an elevator at Marshall Fields’ State Street store. They were married six years later in 1983.

Randy was lured from Chicago by the sunshine and mild winters of the San Francisco Bay Area where he began a consulting and law practice following a 1977 landmark ruling by the Supreme Court that allowed professionals to advertise their services. He was honored with a gold award from the American Marketing Association for his work in the field. Randall formed Berning & Affiliates, Inc. and would touch many lives, spanning over 40 years serving dentists and dental specialties nationwide with its first offices in CA and IL, adding DC in 1986, and FL in 1997. His practice grew and began providing invaluable services in the arenas of practice management, succession planning, and practice growth and transition. He worked miracles for his clients, helping doctors flourish and become effective ‘CEOs’ while navigating their practice and their professional lives, holding true to one of his long-standing mottos: “Our Advice – Your Results”. Carol worked alongside Randy for 35 years providing irreplaceable administration of the firm. In 1989 he earned his LLM (Master of Laws) in Health Law at Loyola University School of Law in Chicago. Randy cherished educating doctors. For seven years Berning & Affiliates developed and ran The Dentistry and the Law Conference™ in coordination with Loyola School of Law and School of Dentistry. He was published with over 125 articles, he coauthored two of the American Dental Association’s top selling publications, and was the publisher of The Expert Series for Dentists™, presented courses nationwide for the American Dental Association and was a longtime member of the National Speakers Association. He also spoke at more than 150 meetings for every dental specialty and was a key developer of the Orthodontist as CEO program for the American Association of Orthodontists. He served as Adjunct Professor of Dental Jurisprudence and Director of Practice Administration at the University of Illinois, College of Dentistry, as adjunct faculty at University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry and at the University of Maryland Baltimore College of Dental Surgery.  With clients nationwide and a young son, the family moved to Naples, FL in 1997 to be closer to his aging parents. After a full, impactful, and satisfying career Randall retired in 2019.

Many genres of music filled Randy’s home and he  would always have something playing, smooth jazz and light classical were frequent favorites.  He loved living in Naples, driving his 1965 Mustang GT Convertible around the town and down to 5th Avenue, finding a good place to put up his hammock, watching a beautiful sunset, taking his wife and son out to pristine beaches on his CraigCat mini-catamaran, devouring his WSJ each morning, delving into history, following politics, and exercising and eating well to stay healthy. He fully enjoyed each day the Lord blessed him with. 

Randy cherished being a father, participating fully in Matthew’s life and passions. He was exceptionally proud of Matthew when he earned his Eagle Scout and served as an Assistant Scout Master for all the years Matthew was in Boy Scouts including joining the troop on weeks-long hiking expeditions to Philmont Scout Ranch among other high adventure activities. After scouting, father and son continued pursuing hiking adventures of their own with multiple epic trips to Yosemite, Olympic, and Lassen National Parks, and to California’s Lost Coast Trail, and Santa Catalina Island, among numerous others. For many years Randy would take annual backpacking trips into Yosemite with a dear friend, former client, and hiking buddy in California. After years of convincing he was also finally able to persuade Carol to join him backpacking with one important caveat – no sleeping on the ground. The two then set out and experienced incredible week+ long hikes together including the Cotswold Way in England, The Milford Track in New Zealand, the French Maritime Alps, Iceland’s Laugavegur Trail, and 117km of the Camino de Santiago. Randy and Carol shared a love of travel and adventure. Over the course of 43 years of marriage, they visited all 50 states and over 60 countries and circumnavigated the globe. His was a life well lived and filled with amazing memories. He loved his family, his dear friends, and the relationships built over a lifetime.

A Celebration of Life will be held in Naples FL on August 21st at Heritage Bay Country Club (in person and via Zoom for details and to RSVP please send an email to [email protected]) and a Funeral service will be held at Oak Hill Cemetery Chapel in Washington DC on August 7th at 10am. A future remembrance gathering in Deerfield IL is also being planned.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to either MD Anderson Cancer Center designating Glioblastoma Research, Avow Hospice in Naples Florida, Deerfield Illinois Historic Society or your favorite charity.