Mrs. Donna L. (Larrabee) Rigali, 94, of Concord, passed away peacefully on May 30, 2018.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Donna was the daughter of the late Carroll and Kathryn (White) Larrabee.
She was raised and educated in Old Greenwich, CT. She attended Swarthmore College for two years before enlisting in the United States Navy during World War II. She proudly served her country for two years. During that time, while serving at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, she met her future husband, Henry A. Rigali when he returned from serving in the Pacific. Upon her discharge as Chief Yeoman, she returned to her studies and graduated from Swarthmore. After marrying, the couple lived briefly in Durham, NC, and then settled in Seaford, New York, where they raised their five children.
Mrs. Rigali was very active in civic, political and professional organizations, including the Seaford PTA, the Nassau County Library Association, the Nassau County Democratic Club, and the American Legion. She was selected as the first chairman of The Friends of the Seaford Library, a community effort instrumental in the founding of the Seaford Public Library in 1956 and served on its board of trustees for nine years.
When her youngest son entered kindergarten, she returned to school herself, and graduated with a Masters Degree in Library Science from C.W. Post College in New York. She then went on to a 35-year career she adored as a reference librarian with the Wantagh Public Library.
A voracious reader throughout her life, her other hobbies included traveling with her husband, sewing and needlework, playing the piano and badminton, a sport she played from her earliest years. As a teen, she won several regional championships, and played all four years at Swarthmore.
Her beloved husband of 60 years, Henry, predeceased her in 2008.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Donna was the daughter of the late Carroll and Kathryn (White) Larrabee.
She was raised and educated in Old Greenwich, CT. She attended Swarthmore College for two years before enlisting in the United States Navy during World War II. She proudly served her country for two years. During that time, while serving at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, she met her future husband, Henry A. Rigali when he returned from serving in the Pacific. Upon her discharge as Chief Yeoman, she returned to her studies and graduated from Swarthmore. After marrying, the couple lived briefly in Durham, NC, and then settled in Seaford, New York, where they raised their five children.
Mrs. Rigali was very active in civic, political and professional organizations, including the Seaford PTA, the Nassau County Library Association, the Nassau County Democratic Club, and the American Legion. She was selected as the first chairman of The Friends of the Seaford Library, a community effort instrumental in the founding of the Seaford Public Library in 1956 and served on its board of trustees for nine years.
When her youngest son entered kindergarten, she returned to school herself, and graduated with a Masters Degree in Library Science from C.W. Post College in New York. She then went on to a 35-year career she adored as a reference librarian with the Wantagh Public Library.
A voracious reader throughout her life, her other hobbies included traveling with her husband, sewing and needlework, playing the piano and badminton, a sport she played from her earliest years. As a teen, she won several regional championships, and played all four years at Swarthmore.
Her beloved husband of 60 years, Henry, predeceased her in 2008.
Mrs. Donna L. (Larrabee) Rigali, 94, of Concord, passed away peacefully on May 30, 2018.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Donna was the daughter of the late Carroll and Kathryn (White) Larrabee.
She was raised and educated in Old Greenwich, CT. She attended Swarthmore College for two years before enlisting in the United States Navy during World War II. She proudly served her country for two years. During that time, while serving at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, she met her future husband, Henry A. Rigali when he returned from serving in the Pacific. Upon her discharge as Chief Yeoman, she returned to her studies and graduated from Swarthmore. After marrying, the couple lived briefly in Durham, NC, and then settled in Seaford, New York, where they raised their five children.
Mrs. Rigali was very active in civic, political and professional organizations, including the Seaford PTA, the Nassau County Library Association, the Nassau County Democratic Club, and the American Legion. She was selected as the first chairman of The Friends of the Seaford Library, a community effort instrumental in the founding of the Seaford Public Library in 1956 and served on its board of trustees for nine years.
When her youngest son entered kindergarten, she returned to school herself, and graduated with a Masters Degree in Library Science from C.W. Post College in New York. She then went on to a 35-year career she adored as a reference librarian with the Wantagh Public Library.
A voracious reader throughout her life, her other hobbies included traveling with her husband, sewing and needlework, playing the piano and badminton, a sport she played from her earliest years. As a teen, she won several regional championships, and played all four years at Swarthmore.
Her beloved husband of 60 years, Henry, predeceased her in 2008.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Donna was the daughter of the late Carroll and Kathryn (White) Larrabee.
She was raised and educated in Old Greenwich, CT. She attended Swarthmore College for two years before enlisting in the United States Navy during World War II. She proudly served her country for two years. During that time, while serving at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, she met her future husband, Henry A. Rigali when he returned from serving in the Pacific. Upon her discharge as Chief Yeoman, she returned to her studies and graduated from Swarthmore. After marrying, the couple lived briefly in Durham, NC, and then settled in Seaford, New York, where they raised their five children.
Mrs. Rigali was very active in civic, political and professional organizations, including the Seaford PTA, the Nassau County Library Association, the Nassau County Democratic Club, and the American Legion. She was selected as the first chairman of The Friends of the Seaford Library, a community effort instrumental in the founding of the Seaford Public Library in 1956 and served on its board of trustees for nine years.
When her youngest son entered kindergarten, she returned to school herself, and graduated with a Masters Degree in Library Science from C.W. Post College in New York. She then went on to a 35-year career she adored as a reference librarian with the Wantagh Public Library.
A voracious reader throughout her life, her other hobbies included traveling with her husband, sewing and needlework, playing the piano and badminton, a sport she played from her earliest years. As a teen, she won several regional championships, and played all four years at Swarthmore.
Her beloved husband of 60 years, Henry, predeceased her in 2008.
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