Randal was a proud and noble decorative pine reindeer, we honor his memory in my household with the impressive silver plaque seen below. Enjoy these memories from friends and loved ones. - JR

Excerpts from the Eulogy of Randal Emmit Piner

“My brother Randal was what you would call a pioneer, a viking even, in fact we called his old eighty one LeBaron the Knarr, the Norse word for ship. Also cause it was pretty gnarly, I mean he must have drove that thing to every Stevie Ray Vaughan show, from the day he got it to the day old Stevie died. But he was a hell of a man. I’m talking about Randal but Stevie was good too. We grew up in a little town called Burleson, Texas, right outside of Dallas. Didn’t have the perfect family home, but my big brother Randal always looked out for me and our two sisters. Practically raised us after Dad took off. Him and our mother, god rest her soul, did their best, and today we thank them for it. But Randal was a born leader, was never gonna be a stay at home dad. So after we were grown, he headed out. Worked his way up north, always was good with his hands, building anything from houses to armchairs. But it was the armchairs that ended up being his trade. Was never sure why people enjoyed his furniture so much. Maybe it was the end of the eighties, and people were sick of all that excessive nonsense. But hell before any of us knew it he was up in Maine building and furnishing cabins for the rich and famous. And when he met Dave, set him up with the Esquire crew, he was golden. Randal was great builder, a great brother, and a truly good man. His untimely death was a shock and a loss for not only those he knew but those he didn’t. The old gentle giant said this to me on my wedding day. “ A life is only worth living when you can share it with people.” I’m gonna miss yah brother. I’m gonna miss yah.”

“I called him Emmit, everyone else called him Randal but I called him Emmit. He thought that every wife should have a name for her husband, a name only she calls him. So that when he hears it, he’s prepared. We met in Colorado, got married in Virginia, and settled down no where. We always said that if we had had a child, he would have been army brat, we moved around so much. But truth is we just loved traveling, as long as we were together, didn’t matter where we were. And damn did we see it all. Used to get calls form people all over the word who wanted him to come and build for them. We had a map, and if that town was crossed out we said no. Expect Dallas, he’d always take a job in Dallas. “That’s Stevie’s home” He’d say. Must have listened to Texas Flood more times than I can remember. But no matter where we were, he’d make us a home, he’d build us a bed, and we worked together on almost every job, cause if you weren’t working than what were yah doing? I would tear him off a piece of furniture, kickin and screamin, and we would lay down in that bed, and we were home. I love you Emmit, I always will, and I promise I’ll never stop working.

“ My name is David Granger, I wanted to say a few words about a friend of mine, Randal. You would think that having worked in the magazine and newspaper industry as long as I have, it would be easy to come up with something to say but it wasn’t. Randal was the most complicated simple man I’ve ever known. I met him up in New Hampshire, he was designing a family friends home, and I was invited to see it. Little did I know, what would transpire was a meeting that I would remember for the rest of my life. I got to the house and it was just him, no crew of workers, no designers just him, and a bottle of Bourbon of course. Always said the only energy drink he needed was a little Bullet Bourbon. He said hello, and if you’re here then yah might as well work. When I tell you we worked till the sun came up it is no understatement. We finished that bottle, and when it was done he put on a pot of coffee. We talked for hours about Texas, New York, and everything in between. And as I picked up my coat to leave in the morning he said my name is Randal, what’s yours? I knew right then and there, this man was a genius, and we were friends ever since. It was a pleasure to know him for the time I did.