Mr. Whiddon was born in Ashburn, GA and resided all of his life in Turner County. Randall started his EMS career over 35 years ago as an EMT in Turner County and worked through the ranks to eventually become the Director of EMS. He was also a firefighter and had once sought to serve as sheriff. Randall retired from Turner County EMS after 33 years of dedicated service; however, he still strived to help others. He continued to serve the community in Coffee and Irwin Counties. His plans were to retire completely to spend more time with his family and 10 grandchildren.<br />
He was an avid fisherman and hunter and, like many residents of the area, a farmer. Randall was a loving, caring person who smiled at everyone he met. He was very people-oriented and was a great mentor for everyone he worked with. Whiddon so cared for everyone in the community that he was known to arrive in uniform to pay his respects to any of his deceased neighbors whether he knew them or not. "He gave his entire life to helping others and being there in a time of need. He's helped us get equipment and facilities and he's just dedicated his whole life to this area." His coworkers described him as "a prime example of the perfect paramedic in Turner County and in the state of Georgia."<br />
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In the early morning hours of June 6, 2013, Randall was in the back of an ambulance caring for a critically ill 65-year-old patient. EMT Teresa Davis was driving the ambulance eastbound on GA State Highway 32 with lights and siren in use. As westbound traffic was yielding the right of way to the ambulance, a tractor-trailer attempting to yield jackknifed directly into the path of the oncoming ambulance. The ambulance struck the left side of the semi, killing all in the ambulance.<br />
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Honored 2014 |