Randal Merchant Obituary, Death – We regret to inform you of the death of Randal Wynn Merchant, 63, of DeRidder, Louisiana. Randy is a 1977 DeRidder High School graduate who retired in 2022 after nearly 40 years of employment as an Operator at the Boise PCA Paper Mill in DeRidder.
His only son, Sean Marx, his mother, Betty Merchant of DeRidder, his sister Lana Brown of Leesville, LA, and a host of loving life-long friends who are more like brothers, as well as many nieces and nephews, are left to mourn his untimely death. Randy’s father, Everett Earl Merchant of DeRidder, died before him. Randy was a passionate fisherman who enjoyed the spring run of White Perch on Toledo Bend as well as saltwater fishing from his old site on Bayou Choupique in Hackberry.
He was a fan of Westerns, John Wayne, and reading, as well as country music, Native American artifacts, and arrowhead hunting. Randy looked forward to annual excursions to the Colorado wilderness with his companion, Steve Temple, where they spent their days 4-wheel trail riding and admiring the Rocky Mountains. He was a gun aficionado with a soft spot for dogs and an excellent cook.
Randy particularly enjoyed the weekly meals he made with his band of Boise’brothers,’ who shared their bounties, talked trash, told fishing lies, and ruminated on their wild and wooly days over a cigarette and a cold beer. In lieu of flowers, his family wants that you commemorate him by making a donation in his memory to the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Department Animal Shelter in DeRidder.
On Thursday, May 18, at 11 a.m., a memorial ceremony will be place at the Chapel of Myers-Colonial Funeral Home on Hwy 190 West in DeRidder. Visitation will begin at 9 a.m., prior to the service. Any friends or family members who wish to speak at his eulogy are welcome to do so. His ashes will be placed with his beloved father at a later date in Beauregard Cemetery.
