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IN LOVING MEMORY OF William Abbott Randolph
William Abbott
Randolph
August 8, 1923 – November 11, 2016
William Abbott Randolph's Obituary
William Abbott Randolph (93) passed away on Veterans Day, November 11, 2016, at the
Vi in Glenview with his children nearby. He was born August 8, 1923 in Chicago to Helen Abbott
and Otto Coffeen Fitz Randolph. The oldest of five children, he grew up in Chicago and Des
Moines, IA. He received his bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1948 from the University of
Illinois following service in the Corps of Engineers on Leyte in the Philippines during World War
II.
Mr. Randolph met his future wife, Ruth Stark, at a scout-sponsored softball game for
veterans in 1946 a week after being discharged from the service. They married in Champaign,
IL on July 2, 1949. After living in Detroit for a short time, they moved to the Chicago area where
they raised five children in Morton Grove and Wilmette.
Mr. Randolph founded the general contracting firm of William A. Randolph Co., Inc. in
1957, a company which constructed durable infrastructure throughout northern Illinois and
which continues to prosper. He was active with American Legion Post 134 and with the Lions
Club, both of Morton Grove. He held leadership positions with the Boy Scouts (Troop 70 of
Morton Grove and Troop 9 of Wilmette) and was the father of four Eagle Scouts. He participated
in community education through both the Morton Grove School Board and the U.S. Power
Squadron of Wilmette, being president of the Wilmette Harbor Association for a spell. He was an
avid and generous fisherman, launching out of Wilmette Harbor. He often trekked down to the
tip of Baja California, Mexico in quest of "the big one."
He is survived by his children: Otto of Los Angeles, CA, Mark of Kansas City, MO, Alison
of Portland, ME, Ian of Chicago, IL and Alan of Scott's Valley, CA; by his six grandchildren: Scott
of Golden, CO, Justin of Portland, ME, Mercedes of Chicago, IL, Naomi, Carolyn and Owen of
Scott's Valley, CA; and by his brother Burleigh of LaCrosse, WI, and his sister, Josephine of
Fisher, IN.
A memorial service in Mr. Randolph's honor will be held at 11:00 Saturday, December 10
at the First Presbyterian Church of Wilmette, with a reception to follow overlooking Lake
Michigan, his favorite fishing hole.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations may be made to in Mr. Randolph's
memory to the Northeast Illinois Council, Boy Scouts of America, in support of Camp Crown in
Trevor, Wisconsin. One long-term project which Mr. Randolph spearheaded involved the
shepherding of countless Scouts in the planting of trees to convert a donated gravel quarry into
a forested campground. Checks in his honor may be made payable to the NEIC and mailed to:
Mary Kelly
Northeast Illinois Council, BSA
2745 Skokie Valley Road
Highland Park, IL 60035
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of William Abbott Randolph, please visit our flower store.
Funeral Services for William Abbott Randolph
Memorial Service
December
10
First Presbyterian Church Of Wilmette
Starts at 11:00 am
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