She didn’t seek fame nor fortune.
She wasn’t well known to the community at large.
She did a number of good deeds, but never sought recognition, pay or reward.
“She” was Linda Riggs, who passed away last Thursday morning after a long battle with cancer.
Linda was relatively unknown outside of her circle of family, church family, friends, and the disabled. She was an advocate for those with disabilities. She served as president of People First, a self-advocacy group for people with disabilities, a couple of times and was their champion. She even attended conferences at the state level, and served on a steering committee.
Ted Litteken, who founded the chapter in 2001, credited Linda with saving it from oblivion in 2002. He described the movement as “floundering,” until Linda came on board.
We remember her initial visit to the Daily News to discuss People First. We recall thinking that this rather shy, unassuming person would be what’s known in journalism as a “hard interview,” meaning short or even one-word answers, often mumbled with a downcast head.
Were we wrong! Linda knew her organization frontwards and backwards, and gave great quotes while confidently telling People First’s story.
But Linda was never boastful. In fact, even after knowing her for many years, we didn’t learn of her educational accomplishments, of her graduating with honors from Ozark Bible Institute with a degree in biblical literature, until after her death.
Linda loved babies. We recall seeing her out to eat several times with a friend, cradling the friend’s two little ones on her lap, looking very much like a doting aunt or proud grandmother.
And she loved to sing and, according to her pastor, the Rev. Myrna Marble, had a beautiful singing voice. She especially loved older hymns, and often tied a verse of Scripture or a testimony to a selection she performed.
Linda was also a volunteer for OATS, the Older Adults Transportation Service. She scheduled trips and was the go-to person if someone needed a ride to the grocery store, the doctor’s office, or wherever. And all of this work she did on a volunteer basis.
Linda wasn’t in the limelight: she didn’t like it and didn’t seek it. She served others behind the scenes, in true Christian fashion. We in this earthly realm will likely never know all of her good works.
And perhaps that’s the way it should be.
DAILY NEWS
