May God bless you and your...
My family is thinking of you at this time.
Keasha Floyd
June 19, 2025 | Hampton, VA
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Photo courtesy of R. Hayden Smith Funeral Home - Hampton
Guest Book
I knew Randy through little league and later, through his public service. Randy and his parents Pat and Micky were, three of the finest people. Mental illness hits everyone. May God be with them.
Bill Black
June 16, 2025 | Newport News, VA | Friend
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My prayers and thoughts are with his family. He will missed.
Rosie Lewis
June 15, 2025 | Hampton, VA | Friend
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I met Randy in 1985 when he arrived in Alabama as a consultant for a Gubernatorial campaign. We quickly became friends that blossomed into a mentor and working relationship over the next many years. Randy was a man of incredible talent, intelligence coupled with brilliant strategic mind.
I will miss you old friend, but am sustained by so many memories of the great times and unlikely political victories we shared.
I am the better man for your friendship, leadership and...
Jimmy Steinwinder
June 14, 2025 | AL | Friend
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I will certainly miss my old friend. We met more than forty years ago while working on a campaign in Virginia and continued to work together on other campaigns in Alabama. I was fortunate that he made me a part of his many adventures including projects in Budapest, Prague and the Green Jobs Alliance. He was a smart, can-do guy. Totally reliable and trustworthy. He also had a great sense of humor and was more fun to be around than any friend I have ever had. May God rest his wonderful soul.
Randy Wilhelm
June 14, 2025 | Birmingham, AL | Friend
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Obituary
Randall's Obituary
Born in Waynesville, NC on August 31, 1960, Randy Gilliland took his life on June 10, 2025. Service to be held Monday, June 16th, 2025 at 2 PM First Presbyterian Church in Hampton.
He is survived by his beloved son, Palmer Gilliland, and aunts, uncles, cousins, and close friends who will forever hold him close within their hearts.
Randy is preceded in death by his grandparents, Elizabeth Adeline Underwood Palmer and James Elmer Palmer, his parents, Patsy (Pat) Palmer Gilliland and Michael (Mickey) Adkins Gilliland, and his aunt, Vivian Gilliland Queen.
Randy graduated from Bethel High School in Hampton, VA, went on to study Animal Science at Virginia Tech, and obtained his Executive MBA from William & Mary. He was elected to the Hampton City Council in 2002 and served through 2010, while also holding the position of vice mayor from 2006 to 2008. Before serving on the City Council, Randy served on the Hampton Redevelopment and Housing Authority and the Planning Commission.
Throughout his professional life, Randy launched a variety of successful businesses, many of which are still in operation today. He traveled extensively in Eastern Europe for business and pleasure, most notably during the Velvet Revolution after the fall of the Berlin Wall. He helped run campaigns in the first democratic elections in Poland, Hungary, and what was then called Czechoslovakia.
Most recently, Randy was the Director of Philanthropy at Equal Justice America, an organization that funds law students to provide legal aid for low-income and vulnerable communities across the nation.
Randy was a lifelong public servant who believed in championing equal rights for all. Through his vision and hard work, Randy was able to improve the lives of many in our local community, as well as across the nation.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made in his honor to your local food bank and Equal Justice America.
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