Randy was born in Nicholson, GA to who he describes as “the greatest parents in the world”. The third offspring after an older brother and sister, Randy was raised on a chicken farm and was active in sports, hunting, and feeding chickens! Randy admits he “hates running” when queried about his favorite races. However, at Jackson County High he ran track for three straight years in the high hurdles, triple jump, and long jump events. Randy claims to be a sprinter but not a long-distance runner. Bob Slowpants doubts this since Randy caught his wife Veronica Doster.
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Randy attended the University of Georgia for three quarters and dropped out. The next year he again attended for three quarters before entering the work force. Randy met Veronica at the Athens plant of Swedish/Swiss multinational ABB Group (now Powerpartners) where she trained Randy on coil winding. Randy initially attempted to wind Veronica up with his brother, but she was more partial to Randy. Randy dabbled in softball in High School and afterwards for a total of ten years before suffering a severely broken ankle in a game that sidelined him from work for eight months. After six operations Randy returned to ABB and was promptly laid off. Randy found work striping parking lots with a friend and kept in touch with Veronica. Like most young men, Randy was into cars! He knew Veronica was a straight shift and not an automatic so he keep his goal in sight.
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In 1993 carefree Randy started work at the Southeast Toyota distribution Center in Commerce, GA waxing cars to earn spending money for a fishing trip to Arkansas. Twenty-five years later Randy is the Operations Manager for the two hundred employee facility. The facility is owned by the JM Family, which owns three vehicle Toyota distribution facilities in the southeast and has associates working across the nation. Randy speaks glowingly of his employer, who was recently named among the one hundred best companies to work for by Fortune magazine. The Commerce location services the southeast. Previously unknown to me, JM Family is the twentieth largest privately held US company and servicing 178 Toyota dealers in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina by providing their inventory of new Toyotas and nationwide with financing and inventory control services.
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When not running and posting photos of restaurants on Facebook, Randy and Veronica have established a rental and rehab housing side business. They currently rent seven homes that they have improved, have sold three, and have three that are a work in progress. Randy and Veronica attempt to complete as much of the renovation of a property themselves as they can, not only to increase the profit and value but because they enjoy doing so. They title the entity Misty Pawperties. The name was derived from their mutual love of the Husky breed of dogs and their deceased Husky, Misty. She was the CDO (chief dog officer) and checked on the progress and approved the purchase of any new pawperties. At one time they had eight huskies and are now down to two, one of which is blind. Randy and Veronica have one acre fenced back yard behind their home they call “Husky Hill”. The back of the home has a doggie entrance that makes the huskies welcome.
After limping around Commerce on his bad ankle for years, Veronica persuaded Randy to participate in the 2015 Power Run in Athens that was being held in memory of a friend of Veronica’s. Randy observed, “Veronica did really good and I finished.” Together they completed twenty races that year and have increased that number each year after 2015. Randy likes the fast course of the Athens Spartan 5K, and any race that supports first responders, and of course dogs.
Bob checking out from the back of the pack. Watch for the profiles of Elaine Dixson and John Hale.