John Joseph Rands Jr.'s Obituary
John Joseph Rands, Jr, a long time Dallas resident, passed away on August 20, 2022, at the age of 96. John was known to most as Randy and affectionately known by his grandchildren and great grandchildren as GD.
Randy was born on August 12,1926, in Salisbury, NY to John Joseph Rands, Sr and his wife Ethel (Lasch) Rands. He was the first of three children. Randy developed his conscientious work ethic helping on the family dairy farm in upstate New York throughout his childhood. He graduated from Dolgeville High School in Dolgeville, NY. Shortly after graduation from High School in 1944, Randy enlisted in the United States Army. His service with the Army led to what would become his career in civilian life after WWII. Randy served with the 527th Fighter Squadron 86th Fighter Group, reaching the rank of Sergeant prior to receiving his honorable discharge on December 12, 1946. Based upon his military experiences, he was committed to a career in aviation.
Following the war, Randy moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma where he attended and graduated from the Spartan College of Aeronautics. As a bonus, Tulsa was where he met and married his wife of 72 years, Beverly. He spent some time travelling the country crop dusting, and then was hired by American Airlines resulting in his move to Dallas. Randy spent 35 years working for American Airlines as a Flight Engineer, working on both domestic and international flights, acting as the Flight Engineer on a variety of aircraft during his career. Randy additionally flew with the Military Air Charter program during the Vietnam War.
Randy had many interests beyond aviation, with the most important to him being his family. Randy shared his love for the water with his daughters including boating, skiing, and fishing. He enjoyed tennis, bowling, and duplicate bridge. He shared his love of reading, made sure that his family had opportunities to travel, emphasized education, and offered many a helping hand. Randy loved growing plants in his greenhouse and maintaining his gardens and yard, with the love of plants passed on to others in the family. He has made certain that his grandchildren and great grandchildren have similar opportunities and his participation in their success has been extremely valuable to them. He made sure they knew that they were always welcome, and he was always willing to share his beloved lake house when they visited. In his quiet times, when not reading, Randy thoroughly enjoyed jigsaw puzzles and challenged himself by recording how much time it took to complete them. Randy and Beverly enjoyed square dancing and belonged to The Swinging Saints. Randy was friendly and sociable and both Randy and Beverly enjoyed hosting and going to parties and eating out as well as quiet times together. Yankee by birth, British/Hungarian by blood, Texan by choice.
Randy was preceded in death by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Joseph Rands, Sr, and his sister Ethel Pufpaff.
John is survived by his wife, Beverly H. Rands, his daughters Susan Rands and Nancy (Dean) Cannavan, grandchildren Courtney (Cannavan) Kelly, Grandson John Cannavan, and great grandchildren Parker Kelly, Savannah Kelly, and Aimee Kelly
The family would like to offer special appreciation to Dr. James Pfister, the staff at PVN, and his best buddies Richie Tovar and Wolfgang Wilson Temba.
A memorial service will be held on September 4, 2022, at 1:00 pm at the Joyce Hall Library at Presbyterian Village North, 8600 Skyline Drive, Dallas, TX. 75243.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to Forefront Living Foundation, 12467 Merit Drive, Dallas, Texas 75251. Note: For Care of Purple Martins, or the charity of your choice.
Funeral arrangements for John Joseph Rands, Jr. have been faithfully entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery, which is located at 13005 Greenville Ave., at the intersection of Restland Road, Dallas, Texas 75243, and can be reached at (972) 238-7111.
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