Individual Details

Obituary

Shirley A. Rigg of Camarillo passed away on July 17th, three days after she celebrated her 84th birthday, happily surrounded by friends and family. Her death was sudden and unexpected, and her loss is deeply felt by many.
Shirley began life in 1925, ?Increasing the population of Aspen, Colorado, 100%,? or so she always joked. She was raised in Grand Junction, Colorado, graduating from Grand Junction High School in 1944. A talented concert violinist, she studied music at Mesa College in Grand Junction, Colorado College in Colorado Springs, and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, serving as Concert Mistress and soloist with university and community orchestras, and teaching music privately and in the public school setting.
Shirley met her life-long sweetheart and future husband, Jack Rigg, in grade school, marrying him in 1946 following his return from World War II. They were happily married for 58 years, until Jack?s death in 2003. Putting her concert violin days behind her, Shirley entered a marriage filled with adventure. After the war, when Jack and his brothers, Jim and Bob, ran river trip expeditions down the Grand Canyon, Shirley managed the rustic Mexican Hat Inn in Mexican Hat, Utah. ?It was the worst place to live,? Shirley recalled, ?desolate, desert everywhere, no roads, 115-degree temperatures, and me, pregnant and caring for our three year old toddler, cooking over a wood burning stove and washing sheets by hand.?
Mining for copper, gold and silver and living in an old, turn of the century ghost town at 11,000 feet altitude in the Colorado Rocky Mountains offered a slightly less inhospitable climate for Shirley and Jack in the 1960s, although she still had to manage a household and raise three children without electricity or running water. And she cooked with determination over a wood burning stove.
In 1968, Jack joined the U.S. Department of the Interior, where he served under three U.S. Presidents. Shirley relished the political scene in Northern Virginia, running for the House of Delegates in 1970, organizing the Salute to the States during the inauguration of Richard Nixon, and serving as an officer with the Fairfax County Republican Committee. Shirley and Jack moved to Camarillo in 1996, following Jack?s retirement in 1995.
Shirley was a crack bridge player, joining the Camarillo Newcomers Club as soon as she settled in Camarillo. She also served for 60 years as an active member of P.E.O., the Philanthropic Educational Organization, which provides higher education scholarships for women.
More than anything, Shirley was a dedicated mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, who will be remembered for her keen mind and love of music, as well as her incredible courage, strength, and dogged determination to face and overcome all odds. She is survived by her three children, five grandsons, and seven great grandchildren, including Jack and Jan Rigg, Nancy Rigg, Hal and Betsy Maxwell, John, Jennifer, Evan and Lucas Rigg, Jim, Lauren, Matthew, JonMichael, Daniel and Abby Rigg, Mike Rigg, Devin, Katie and June Maxwell, Ryan and Nicole Maxwell, her devoted caregiver, Auralee Sepulveda, and housekeeper, Maritza Guerrero, as well as many loving nieces, nephews, and friends around the world.
A memorial service will be held on Tuesday, July 21st, at 3:00 PM, at the Camarillo United Methodist Church, 291 Anacapa Drive, Camarillo 93010, followed by a reception at the church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Camarillo Hospice, 400 Rosewood Ave., # 102, Camarillo, CA 93010, P.E.O. Chapter RG, Camarillo, and the Higgins & Langley Memorial and Education Fund, 8 Pelham Rd., Asheville, NC 28803.