Be Extraordinary, Be You: The Randy Bacchus Story

By Heather and Randy Bacchus, guests on the Dr. Phil Show, Merit Street Media Channel, July 15, 2024

Our son, Randy completed suicide shortly after sending us a message in the early hours of July 17th, 2021. 

Sadly, his last text to us stated, “I love you and am sorry for everything. I love dad and the same to him. I wish I would have been a better person.”

Randy often sent us songs he liked and related to. This is a line from the song Ordinary Man, one he sent a few months before he died. 

 “Yes, the truth is, I don’t wanna die an ordinary man…” 

Randy did not die an “ordinary man.”  In fact, his whole life, he was extraordinary, but he didn’t know it. From the day he was born until the day he died, he was an independent individual, special and unique.

Forever 21, Randy died by Cannabis-Induced Psychosis and Suicide. 

Randy started smoking marijuana at the age of 15 to find social acceptance, and quickly became an advocate for the “healing” properties of Cannabis. As an individual with a busy mind, Randy enjoyed the brief period of euphoria he experienced while using. 

However, misled by an industry that profits off of addiction, he unknowingly and permanently damaged his brain.  The result of his use, the cannabis trifecta – early age of onset of use, the frequency with which he used, and the high potency he used, caused his demise and we miss him dearly.

To bring awareness, inform and educate people as to the real truth about today’s Marijuana (THC) and help with parents and youth that are struggling with addiction, we have created

“Be Extraordinary, Be You!” 

How we got there

As a child, Randy Michael Bacchus, III, was incredibly goofy, and he always kept things interesting. He could be quite naughty or truly angelic.  Though often sweet, enduring, kind, compassionate, creative, and humorous, he could also be fiercely independent, defiant, impulsive, and difficult.  

From the start, we realized he was wired a bit differently. Randy struggled during his middle and high school years and we sought professional guidance. He began to seek comfort in using substances when he was 15 years old. Weed in particular became a way for him to self-medicate, and it led to much friction in our home and his personal life. He had a rocky high school experience and attended a few different schools, ultimately graduating on time.

If we had had it our way, Randy would have attended a college near home or joined the armed forces. But Randy was never one to do anything anyone else’s way. Instead, he desperately wanted to go to Colorado to ski and attend Boulder. Up to this point, his independence served him well. In August 2018, he moved to Boulder, started working full-time, got his residency, and began taking classes at a community college. Eventually, he started his own web design company, Bacchus Creative, and a fashion company, Maxim Streetwear, USA. He managed to do all of this while holding a full-time job and taking classes. Again we were so proud of him, and he seemed happy. 

In Colorado, Randy obtained a medical marijuana card, which was routine at that time for 18-year-olds.  Colorado has since tightened up the restrictions for medical marijuana cards issued to those under age 21. 

The rest is on their website:  https://www.beextraordinarybeyou.com/our-son  Heather and Randy Bacchus’ non-profit is Be Extraordinary Be You.  They’re realtors in Minnesota and inspirational speakers to high school students.