Randall I. Stoneking

Randall I. Stoneking, of Rio Verde, died on Saturday, Dec. 18, 2021 following a severe allergic reaction to chemo treatment that caused a cardiac arrest; he was 75 years old. He was born in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Sept. 20, 1946, to Joseph and Dorothy (Whyte) Stoneking.

As a boy, he was a catcher on his baseball team and a newspaper delivery boy. He acquired a fondness for cars and was especially proud of his 1961 Chevy Corvair Monza Spyder convertible. Randy graduated from Washington High School in 1964 and followed his older brother, Brad, to Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa, where he joined the Delta Sigma Chi fraternity and studied business administration. While a college student, he married (Olivia) Jeanne Gilbertson and the couple had two children, Matthew Randall and Margaret Ann. In addition to his studies, Randy worked full time to support his young family in a men’s clothing store in Sioux City.

After graduating from Morningside in 1968, the family moved back to Sioux Falls and Randy started working in the insurance business. They moved to the Twin Cities in Minnesota in 1970, and then in a series of moves back and forth from Minnesota to Wisconsin over the next few years, Randy established himself in the management chain at Mutual Service Insurance Company, later to become MSI Insurance. He would eventually be vice president of agribusiness sales.

The family had many enjoyable vacations to Flathead Lake (Montana), Banff (Canada), Honolulu (Hawaii), northern Minnesota, southern California, etc. Randy enjoyed camping and boating with his daughter. He and his son played golf together; they also enjoyed playing catch and shooting baskets in the driveway. Randy coached Matt’s baseball and basketball teams for a few years.

Randy and Jeanne divorced in 1989, and Randy settled in Mendota Heights, Minn. During the late 1980s, Randy became friends with Sue and Tom Erickson, a friendship that remained close until the end of his life. In Mendota Heights, Randy and Sue and Tom were members of the Mendakota Country Club and their social lives were centered in that community.

In 1996, Randy retired from the insurance business. During the ensuing years, he played a lot of golf, traveled to Arizona (as well as Florida and the Carolinas) with Sue and Tom, often in a conversion van he bought at the Minnesota State Fair; he enjoyed many a bottle of wine and quite a few gin and tonics. He listened to country music and read countless espionage and thriller novels. He was a fan of Minnesota and Arizona sports teams. Randy was grandfather to four girls, whom he adored; he made visits to Anchorage, Alaska (where Marge and her family lived) and to Appleton, Wis. (where Matt and his family lived).

Frequent golfing trips to the Phoenix area eventually led to Randy’s purchase of a townhouse in Rio Verde, and relocation to that community in 2012. After a long interval of retirement, Randy earned his real estate agent’s license and started selling homes in the Rio Verde, Tonto Verde, and Fountain Hills areas. This business was successful due to Randy’s hard work and natural way of interacting with clients. His second career gave him the financial security to make upgrades to his town house and to regularly lease new vehicles. He served in leadership roles in the Rio Verde Country Club, in the Villas Townhouse Association, and the Rio Verde Community Association Board of Directors.

His family is deeply saddened to lose Randy so suddenly. They are, nevertheless, grateful that he lived a full and satisfying life up to the end. He is survived by his brother, Brad Stoneking of St. Louis Park, Minn.; his children, Matt Stoneking of Appleton, Wis. and Marge Stoneking of Anchorage, Alaska, his grandchildren Olivia (Logan) Daniels of Anchorage, Alaska, Emma Stonesmyth of Colorado Springs, Colo., Beverly Larson of Flagstaff, Ariz. and Kathryn Stonesmyth of Carlisle, Pa.; his nephews, Mark (Melissa) Stoneking of Murrells Inlet, S.C. and Jeff Stoneking of Maple Grove, Minn.; his niece Meg (Steve) Swenson of Golden Valley, Minn., and by his dear friends, Sue and Tom Erickson of Rio Verde.

A memorial service will be held on Sunday, March 13, at 2 p.m. in the Community Church of the Verdes in Rio Verde and will be live-streamed at verdefaith.org/memorial-services-live-stream. The service will be immediately followed by a celebration of life reception at the Rio Verde Community Center. Donations can be made in Randy’s memory to the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center (southwestwildlife.org), the Community Church of the Verdes (verdefaith.org), or the Minnesota Twins Community Fund (mlb.com/twins/community/fund).