Retired educator John Randle King died at the age of 93 on June 5, 2009 at the Claremont Manor Care Center after a long illness.

Mr. King was born to Joe and Ruby King on April 20, 1916 in Goldfield, Nevada, a gold-mining town where his father was the electrical engineer for the goldmine. He had one younger sister, Mary, now deceased.

After a family move to California, Mr. King spent most of his school years in El Centro.

In 1938, Mr. King graduated from Pomona College.  It was there that he met his future wife, Dorothy.  They were married on the campus in Bridges Hall of Music on July 20, 1941 and were blessed to have almost 68 years together. 

“We had a wonderful relationship with each other. It was just a wonderful marriage,” commented Dorothy King.

Mr. King received his teaching credential and master’s degree from Claremont Graduate School (now University.)  For over 36 years, he spent his professional career at East Bakersfield High School with several responsibilities as a history teacher, counselor, dean of boys and assistant principal.

According to family, he thoroughly enjoyed his work and was highly respected by teachers and students. 

“He was a wonderful teacher. He really listened,” said his daughter, Nancy King Smith. “Among other things, he taught a human relations class, which was kind of a first, sort of unusual. He established a sense of trust with students so they could explore feelings and ideas and wishes and dreams. His style was very connecting.”

From the beginning of his career, Mr. King took an active part in the California Teachers Association, serving in several offices.  As president of the Central Section of the CTA, he proposed the plan to organize chapters, which was adopted by the State Board.  East Bakersfield High School was the original chapter.

After retiring in 1976, he was very active in the California Retired Teachers Association, holding several offices in the Kern Division and serving as president of the organization.  At the state level, he also held several offices and was president of the state CRTA, which was comprised of almost 50,000 members. 

All his life, Mr. King was involved in church activities at both Bakersfield Trinity United Methodist Church and Claremont United Methodist Church.  He was a lay leader representative to Annual and Jurisdictional Conferences, secretary of the Conference Council on Ministries and received the honor of Layman of the Year of Greater Bakersfield Council of Churches in 1967. From the start of the Heifer Project in California in 1945, he and his wife took an active part. In Kern County, he was chairman of the Heifer Committee.

In 1991, Mr. King and his wife moved to Claremont Manor where both of their mothers, Loraine Rickenberg and Ruby King, had lived in earlier years.  He joined several committees and was twice president of the Residential Association for 2-year terms. Family shared that he loved to engage others in conversation to discuss current events, religion, politics or life in general.  Many young people considered him to be, in various ways, their mentor.

“He has always been seen as someone who would be caring and really wanting to help people think through things,” said Ms. King Smith.

Mr. King always loved his garden and won 1st and 2nd prizes in the Claremont Manor garden competition. 

“He had a green thumb for everything,” remarked his wife.

Other hobbies Mr. King enjoyed were photography, hiking, reading, traveling and knitting.  After learning to knit from his wife, he made many intricate patterned sweaters and vests for his grandchildren and himself.

“He was certainly skilled,” Ms. King said.

Mr. King is survived by his wife, Dorothy King of Claremont; by his son and daughter-in-law Norman King (former city manager of Claremont) and Terry Dean of Palm Springs; by his daughter and son-in-law, Nancy King Smith and Kemp Smith of Shaker Heights, Ohio; by his grandchildren, Deborah King and her husband Bill Mann, Kevin King and his wife Juliet Biagi, Kara Smith and her husband Jobie Turner, Haley Smith and her husband Harrison Green-Fishback and Dara Dean; and by his 6 great-grandchildren, Griffin, Kiran, Isabella, Avery, Gavin and Rowan.

A celebration of Mr. King’s life will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, June 21, 2009 at Claremont United Methodist Church, 211 W. Foothill Blvd.

Memorial gifts may be sent to the Claremont United Methodist Church, Pacific Homes Foundation c/o Claremont Manor or the Heifer Project.