Dr. Randal Allen Skidgel passed away peacefully on August 29, 2026, after a several-year journey with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy Body Dementia.

Born on October 30, 1952, in Oakland, California, Randy started his life the way he lived it: efficiently and just before the deadline. Determined not to have a Halloween baby, his mother, Phyllis, gave Randy his first deadline, and he made it with minutes to spare.

The favorite, and only, son of Phyllis and Elvis Skidgel, Randy spent his childhood in Livermore, California, and his high school years in San Diego, where he was thick as thieves with his sister Sharon and occasionally nice to his sister Kathy.

Music was woven into Randy’s life from the beginning. He played trumpet, piano, and guitar; marched in the band; sang duets with his sister and father; performed in Male Chorale, Soul Purpose, and as the bass singer with a men’s quartet, The Power Company. His love of music carried into the next generation when his son, Wesley, became a professional trumpet player, carrying forward an instrument his father had loved since childhood.

Randy also inherited his father’s deep curiosity, not simply about how things worked, but about what made them work and how they might be made better. He wanted to understand the mechanisms behind things, ask what was happening and why, and then see whether there was a better way to do it. That curiosity would shape nearly every part of his life.

Randy grew up in the Nazarene Church, where he developed a deep faith in Jesus that remained a foundation throughout his life. He later attended Wheaton Evangelical Free Church for 25 years, where he sang bass, performed with the men’s quartet The Four Fathers, and served as an elder. He and Debbie later attended College Church in Wheaton, where he continued singing in the choir. For Randy, faith and science were never opposing ideas. The more he learned about the intricate processes of the natural world, the more remarkable he found the complexity and wonder of God’s creation.

That combination of curiosity and faith shaped his education and ultimately his life’s work. Randy attended Point Loma Nazarene University, earning a BA in Chemistry before receiving his PhD in Physiology and Pharmacology from the University of California, San Diego. Summers spent in Dr. Vic Heasley's research program had a major impact on his career choice and success in it. College was not all studying and experiments; there were plenty of pranks and shenanigans along the way. It was also where Randy’s life changed in the most important way.

In 1971, he met the love of his life, Debbie. Randy wooed her with midnight laundry dates, donuts, silly walks across campus, and eventually a custom love song composed and played on his guitar. The song was his proposal, and they married in June 1975, beginning a partnership that would span more than 51 years.

Randy and Debbie built a life filled with family, faith, adventure, and an abiding love of learning. Together, they traveled extensively, exploring Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Brazil, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Ireland, Scotland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Sicily, Canada, Hawaii, and Alaska.

They welcomed their daughter, Jennifer, in 1978, and their son, Wesley, in 1980. Randy took great joy in his children’s activities, faithfully attending recitals, concerts, games, and meets—and somewhat less joy in the one season Jennifer played eighth-grade basketball, which was rough for everyone involved.

Randy was equally devoted to staying active. He completed 10 marathons in his 20s and 30s before turning to bicycling, another love he inherited from his father, Elvis. At his peak, he averaged roughly 8,000 miles a year, riding with friends locally and on adventures through Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, along the Natchez Trace, and from Shipshewana, Indiana, to Mackinac Island.

His ultimate cycling experience came on August 26, 2014, when Randy was invited to join professional cyclist George Hincapie and a group of younger cyclists at a road bicycling climbing clinic. Randy had planned to ride his own, but when invited to join them, he gave his characteristic quiet shrug—as though being asked to ride alongside a professional cyclist was no big deal. He was, in fact, very excited. He then proceeded to leave all of the younger cyclists in the dust and kept up with George.

That same curiosity and determination defined Randy’s professional life.  In 1980, he relocated with his family to work with Dr. Ervin Erdös, who would remain a mentor throughout Randy's career and, over 38 years, became a valued colleague and friend. Dr. Skidgel became an internationally recognized leader in cardiovascular and inflammatory pharmacology, publishing widely and helping advance the understanding of endothelial function, nitric oxide signaling, and bradykinin receptor pharmacology. Among his significant contributions was identifying and characterizing carboxypeptidase M, research that helped expand scientific understanding of peptide signaling, vascular biology, and inflammation.

But beyond Randy’s scientific accomplishments, his truest professional legacy may have been the people he taught. An inspiring teacher and deeply committed mentor, he trained a generation of PhD students and postdoctoral fellows, many of whom went on to influential positions in academia and the biomedical industry. They carried with them the standards of scientific integrity, critical thinking, and intellectual curiosity that Randy demanded of himself and instilled in others.

In 2017, Randy received the title that would become his favorite of all: Papa. His granddaughter, Elizabeth Grace, arrived and captured his heart from the very beginning. Randy and Ellie shared countless adventures: playing pretend, reading, chasing Lily, doing yard work, being silly, and discussing the interesting things Ellie discovered in his science journals. He delighted in her questions, just as he had always delighted in questions himself.

Randy timed everything to the minute, from submitting grants to catching trains. He could spend hours figuring out how to improve something, thousands of miles riding a bicycle, years pursuing a single scientific question, and more than five decades building a family he loved deeply.

Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy Body Dementia changed Randy’s life in ways no one would have chosen, gradually taking away much of the independence and connection that had defined him. After several difficult years, he passed away peacefully on August 29, comfortable and surrounded by love. His final moments were quiet and peaceful, much like the man he had been in life.

Randy leaves behind his beloved wife of 51 years, Debbie; his daughter, Jennifer (Scott Neidl); his son, Wesley; his cherished granddaughter, Elizabeth; and his sisters, Sharon Skidgel and Kathy (Jeff) Freyschlag. He was preceded in death by his parents, Phyllis and Elvis, and his grandparents, Grace and Newt Allen and Mary Skidgel.

We are left with the things Randy taught us: the questions he encouraged us to ask, the critical thinking he instilled in us, the music he passed down, the miles he traveled, the faith that grounded him, and the example he set of living a life filled with curiosity, purpose, integrity, and love.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in memory of Dr. Skidgel to Point Loma Nazarene University’s Research Associates program. The program was created by PLNU science alumni to give future students the same transformative research opportunities that shaped their own lives and careers.

Checks should be made payable to Point Loma Nazarene University, with “Research Associates” noted on the memo or secondary indication line, and mailed to: PLNU, 3900 Lomaland Drive, San Diego, CA 92106, Attention: Dr. Steve Seeling, University Advancement.

A visitation will be held on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at Hultgren Funeral Home, 304 N. Main St., Wheaton, IL 60187, from 2:00 p.m. until the time of the memorial service at 3:00 p.m.