Magistrate Judge Randy Pruitt died suddenly of an illness Jan. 21, leaving family and friends, and Lumpkin County, poorer for his passing.
Pruitt, a native of Lumpkin County, spent his life in service to the people of his hometown as a dispatcher, deputy, sheriff and judge.
“Lumpkin County is losing not only a great magistrate judge, but more importantly we are losing a great person,” said long-time friend Superior Court Judge Raymond George.
George and Pruitt met at the Police Academy in the 1980s while George was in the military police and Pruitt was deputy sheriff. Their professional lives kept crossing through the years, and George’s first wife, “Shay,” was good friends with Pruitt.
“When my first wife died Randy was literally a shoulder to cry on,” George said.
Pruitt had a knack for letting people pour out their problems to him, said his Assistant Magistrate Judge Dyann Beaty.
“People would come into our office with some crazy problems, problems the magistrate court couldn’t do anything about. They’d go into Randy’s office and somehow come out smiling. He had this almost mystic ability to hear people, to connect with people on a different level,” she said. “He was 100 percent genuine in caring for others. I think that was one of his best qualities. It was a real gift.”
Abbie Murphy, Pruitt’s secretary, saw it firsthand.
“He truly loved everybody and treated everybody equally and fairly,” she said.
“He never met a stranger,” Deputy Shane Murphy recalled. Murphy and Pruitt met when both worked at Lumpkin County Sheriff’s office.
Debbie Lowe grew up with Pruitt.
“Randy, Rachel [Pruitt], Jeff [Lowe] and I all went to school together from grade school through high school,” she said. “Randy was genuine. When he said, ‘Hey, it’s good to see you,’ he really meant it. And he said that to everybody.”
George agreed,
“He honestly cared about people as people,” he said.
The Rev. Charles Grant, speaking of Pruitt, quoted Proverbs 17:22 during his funeral service, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.…”
And Pruitt was definitely known for having a merry heart.
‘LARGER THAN LIFE’
Beaty and Pruitt first met in 2007 when they were both members of the Kiwanis Club. “He was always larger than life,” she said. “You couldn’t be with him for more than a minute without laughing or smiling.”
Former Nugget publisher Terrie Ellerbee became acquainted with Pruitt when her daughter and his son were dating in the late 1990s/early 2000s.
“This was back in the R&R Auction days,” she said. “The highlight of our week was the auction on Friday nights. Randy was the reason why. He would make us all laugh as he described the items up for bid, joking about ‘genuine imitation’ items and ‘not your usual auction’ stuff. He would get the crowd stirred up with his ‘come on and get ‘em, get ‘em, get ‘em’ refrain, and share his opinion on who got the “deal of the night.
Pruitt could also spin an entertaining tale, Murphy recalled. The two met when Pruitt returned to Lumpkin County Sheriff’s Office as a transport deputy. Murphy, working in the warrants division at that time, often “had the privilege of riding with him on road trips, transporting prisoners or going to pick them up from another facility on a warrant,” he said. “I loved hearing his stories about his early days as a deputy and as sheriff. It was so different back then.”
Pruitt started in law enforcement as a dispatcher and served 19 years in law enforcement, including four years as Lumpkin County Sheriff, from 1989-1993. He was appointed as an assistant magistrate judge by his boyhood friend Magistrate Judge Jeff Lowe in 2010. Lowe, in poor health, decided not to run for another term in 2012. Pruitt threw his hat in the ring and won election over three other contenders. He was reelected on every ballot since.
“He was the best boss I ever had,” Beaty said. “I don’t remember ever having a cross word. Never for a moment did I feel unappreciated. He had a way of making you feel important.”
MAN OF MANY ROLES
Pruitt was a licensed auctioneer, businessman and real estate agent through the years; a member of Bethel Tabernacle Baptist Church, and a loving husband, father and grandfather.
“When I think of Randy the words that come to mind are generosity and caring for others," said Debbie Lowe. “A lot of the things he did he didn’t want people to know about. He just did them out of the kindness of his heart.”
Pruitt was laid to rest in the Bethel Tabernacle Baptist Church Cemetery Monday.
“He was sweet, kind and generous,” Beaty said. “I’m going to miss him.”
Ellerbee echoed that sentiment.
“He was funny, friendly, kind and vibrant with happy life vibes,” she said. “The world needs more Randys. How fortunate we were to know him.”