DIXIE RANDALL

Dixie Leah Randall, of Braham, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, at GracePointe Crossing in Cambridge. She was 89 years old.

Dixie, the daughter of Richard and Leona (Hahn) Sando, was born on January 20, 1937, in Edgeley, North Dakota. The family resided in North Dakota and Iowa, but later settled in Ogilvie, Minnesota and it was there that she attended school. She graduated high school at Ogilvie in 1955. After high school, she attended St. Cloud State University and graduated with a teaching and speech therapy degree in 1959.

Not long after graduating, Dixie married Waldo Randall and they moved to Rochester where they lived for 6 years, where Dixie worked as an elementary school teacher and speech therapist. Later, they moved to Braham, started a family and were blessed with three children. Waldo and Dixie later bought and operated the funeral home in Braham.

Dixie donated a lot of her time and made a difference in her community through her passion for public service by volunteering. She was a founding member of Braham's Dollars for Scholars program, was a Red Cross volunteer for many years as chair of local blood drives and for disaster relief. She served as a FEMA board representative, volunteered for the Friends of the Library, election judging, and many other groups to help the Braham community. She was always willing to help for any cause at Braham Lutheran Church.

Dixie loved to cook, was an avid quilter, and enjoyed knitting (she stayed busy, knitting about 50 caps per year to donate to children in need). She led a fun and interesting life, full of activities she loved, such as going to the state fair, berry picking, and camping. She and Waldo traveled extensively for leisure and for purpose with trips to China, Romania, Norway, Hudson Bay, northern Canada, Alaska, Zaire, and many national and state parks. She adored flowers, birds, and reading every historical marker that she ran across.

But, more than anything, Dixie loved her children and her grandkids. She made a point to follow up on and enable every child's activities and interests. She had a passion to try to help them along in education and in life. When travel had become harder for Waldo, the family would instead rent a cabin on Woman Lake for a week every summer, where all the grandchildren could fish, swim, and compete in the Longville turtle races. Holidays and gatherings were loaded with traditional foods and activities. She raised a family of lefsa and potato dumpling makers who all loved spending time together.

Braham is a tight and wonderful community where Dixie thrived with a great number of friends and connections. She was grateful for her friends in the schools, at church, the Park Café, Elmhurst, sewing, knitting and book clubs. If she was allowed to converse with enough time, Dixie could find a connection with anyone in the world, within six degrees of Braham Minnesota.

Dixie was preceded in death by her parents, husband Waldo, grandson Logan, and brother Rod Sando.

She is survived by her children, Heidi (Troy) Wilson, Eric (Amy) Randall, and Jed (Elisa) Randall; grandchildren, Isaiah, Luke, Ben, Axel, Aria, Tia, Cade, and Evan; sisters, Cathy (Maynard) Berland and Marilyn Lindquist; sister-in-law Janice Sando; many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

A Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 am on Monday, January 26, 2026, at the Braham Ev. Lutheran Church with Pastor Suzanne Begin officiating.

Visitation will be held from 1:00 – 3:00 pm on Sunday, January 25, 2026, at the Hamilton Funeral Homes- Rock Chapel in Braham and again 1 hour prior to the service at the church.

Interment will be in the Rice Lake Cemetery in Braham.

Memorial are preferred to the Braham Ev. Lutheran church.