Howard John Rigsby

Howard John Rigsby of Woodstock, Illinois (formerly of Wilmette, IL) passed away on January 8, 2022 at home with family by his side after a courageous two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. He was born on December 11, 1949 in Jamaica, New York and was raised by his mother and adoptive father, Elaine and Doug Rigsby. After graduating from Andrew Jackson High School in New York in 1967, he joined the U.S. Air Force where he served his country from 1968-1972. A significant part of his service in the Air Force took place in Thailand. He attended several colleges, most notably SUNY-New Paltz, before graduating from George Mason University in Virginia. He went on to pursue a law degree from the John Marshall Law School in Chicago where he lived and practiced law for several decades. Later in life Howard enjoyed nearly 19 years building custom furniture in his shop in Woodstock with many of the English Springer Spaniels that he rescued, loved, and cared for over the years by his side.

He is survived by his two daughters, Megan Rigsby Klein (Alex) of Evanston, IL and Molly Atanasoff (Todd) of Newburyport, MA; his five beloved grandchildren, Aidan, Maya, and Charlotte Klein, and Keene and Heeth Atanasoff; his partner Christine Grene; his siblings Nancy Southern, Wendy Brendle (Earl), Robert Rigsby (Becky), Donna Zacher (Heiko), John Schwaebler (Regina), and Tommy Schwaebler as well as countless other friends and family members.

A military service and celebration of Howard's life will take place on Friday July 15, 2022 at McHenry County Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to COTA for Heeth's Hope (www.COTAforHeethsHope.com) in Howard's honor to assist with transplant-related expenses in honor of his youngest grandson Heeth.

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