Nova Riggs Crisp of Portola Valley died December 18, 2025, in Portola Valley, California. She was born September 25, 1920, in Page, Nebraska, the daughter of Aden and Katherine (Kohler) Riggs. She enjoyed her childhood in a tiny rural town and on a nearby family farm. After graduating from Page High School, Nova obtained a teaching credential and taught school for several years in Nebraska. She moved to Los Angeles during WWII and joined the Nurse Cadet Corps, attending nursing school at Los Angeles County General Hospital.
While visiting relatives in Michigan she met James Wallace Crisp, an English architect working in Canada. She and James married in 1945 and lived in Montreal for 2 years. After the war Nova and James traveled on the Queen Mary to England where they stayed until 1952. They then came to California where Nova worked as a nurse. They lived in Berkeley and then in Portola Valley after their daughter Tamara Ann was born. Tammy was afflicted with Rett syndrome, a progressive debilitating neurological condition. With James' help, Nova dedicated her life to caring for their daughter until James' death in 2006, when Nova was not able to provide care by herself. Tammy was moved to a nearby care facility where she passed away peacefully in 2020.
Nova was also preceded in death by her sister Ruth Riggs Anderson. She is survived by nieces Kathe Anderson, Connie Kenney and Nova Christine Molina; their spouses, their six children and their two grandchildren.
Nova worked at The Sequoias Portola Valley retirement community as a relief nurse from 1972 to 1986. In 2009 she moved there to spend the remainder of her days, enjoying the people and beautiful surroundings she had grown so fond of.
Nova was a devoted wife, mother, sister and aunt. As an animal lover she put her nursing skills to good use, mending and caring for diverse wild animals and pets. She was a creative baker and a prolific knitter. She was a kind and generous spirit, resilient and indomitable, always facing life with humor and insight. Nova was an inspiration to those who knew her and she will be dearly missed.
While visiting relatives in Michigan she met James Wallace Crisp, an English architect working in Canada. She and James married in 1945 and lived in Montreal for 2 years. After the war Nova and James traveled on the Queen Mary to England where they stayed until 1952. They then came to California where Nova worked as a nurse. They lived in Berkeley and then in Portola Valley after their daughter Tamara Ann was born. Tammy was afflicted with Rett syndrome, a progressive debilitating neurological condition. With James' help, Nova dedicated her life to caring for their daughter until James' death in 2006, when Nova was not able to provide care by herself. Tammy was moved to a nearby care facility where she passed away peacefully in 2020.
Nova was also preceded in death by her sister Ruth Riggs Anderson. She is survived by nieces Kathe Anderson, Connie Kenney and Nova Christine Molina; their spouses, their six children and their two grandchildren.
Nova worked at The Sequoias Portola Valley retirement community as a relief nurse from 1972 to 1986. In 2009 she moved there to spend the remainder of her days, enjoying the people and beautiful surroundings she had grown so fond of.
Nova was a devoted wife, mother, sister and aunt. As an animal lover she put her nursing skills to good use, mending and caring for diverse wild animals and pets. She was a creative baker and a prolific knitter. She was a kind and generous spirit, resilient and indomitable, always facing life with humor and insight. Nova was an inspiration to those who knew her and she will be dearly missed.
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