Randall Glenn Erickson

Randall (Randy) was born July 7, 1942, in Akron, Colorado. He lived with his parents and older brother on a small farm outside Akron until he was in the seventh grade. This home had no indoor water or plumbing until shortly before they moved to Idaho. Experiencing hail for several years, which had a negative effect on crop yield, their family was influenced by friends who had moved from Akron to the Treasure Valley a couple of years earlier and who were impressed with the weather and the area.

In Colorado, Randy and Roger attended a one room school with 8 grades. In Caldwell, where they moved, Randy attended Junior High and graduated from Caldwell High School. This graduating class has been especially close for many years and are still friends. Randy’s first year of college was at College of Idaho in Caldwell. He didn’t do particularly well that year because of a lack of focus and poor prior education. Yet, many years later, he returned to teach at College of Idaho after he retired. He spent almost 4 years at Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho, where he graduated and was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. Members of this fraternity, like his Caldwell graduating class, remained close friends for many years. Randy had lots of friends, and many were lifelong friends.  Randall was a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army and then a Captain in the Air Force.  He loved being honored on Veteran's Day and enjoyed participating restaurants on that day and getting together with other veterans.

In May of 1968, Randy married Ramona Moore in Burley, Idaho. Burley was where Ramona had attended high school. She was teaching high school in Caldwell at the time. They became acquainted because of the effort of Randy’s friends to get them together, one of these friends married Ramona’s roommate, Ila. Their marriage was later solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple in December 1970, two and a half years after their original marriage.

Together, Randy and Ramona had five children. Christopher Kenneth, Shaelagh Jean (McKay), Jenny Cherain, Tanya Corynn (Holmes) and Angela Mariel Erickson. Tanya died at 51 in Louisiana. This was just as Randy was able to go home from the hospital after some cancer treatment.

Randy and Ramona moved several times as he did graduate work, and he upgraded his skills in accounting and teaching. His favorite jobs were working for Husky Oil, Ed Johnson and Glen Nielson in Cody, Wyoming; a stint as a CEO of a large preschool in Arvada, Colorado, after he completed graduate work and teaching at UNC in Greeley. He was a high school teacher in California, and he worked for Bill Mixon and later Mary Ann Chaney in Boise and Caldwell in accounting and taxes.

Five years ago in July, Randy was diagnosed with three kinds of cancer, lymphoma, prostrate and advanced skin cancer (although cancer was first indicated as a possibility in 2018). The July diagnosis was confirmed in September. He has been fighting cancer with several treatments. This included several weeks of radiation. This past January, it was confirmed that a small amount of prostrate cancer cells had spread to his bones. Two weeks later tests indicated these cancer cells were spread throughout his body but were not in his head. However, he did live 5 years past the original diagnosis. It is amazing that he was able to live 5 more years. His family is grateful that he lived these past 5 years as a fighter after receiving his original diagnosis. We are thankful for the doctors and medical staff, including Terrace Home Health who treated him and that he was able to live his last 9 days at home with his wife, with Jenny, Angela and Chris, and with the help of home health.

As per Randy’s request, there will be no services or graveside observance. At a later date we may have a few friends and family get together to celebrate him.