Robert J. Rigney

Robert Joseph Rigney, Jr. died peacefully at age 90 on April 4, 2024 in Monterey, California. He died after a short illness, having lived with Alzheimer's for several years.

He was born in 1933 to Helen (nee Wall) and Robert Joseph Rigney in Chicago, the second of four children (he is predeceased by Rita and Margo and survived by Thomas). From that day on, he held a few things dear: his Chicago roots, the Catholic faith, basketball, and friends and family.

He grew up in Chicago's Oak Park neighborhood, which he never let anyone forget, surrounded by his siblings and a large circle of Irish-American aunts, uncles and cousins.

Bob, or "Fish" as he was known to his school friends, graduated from his beloved Fenwick High School in 1951. As a sharp-elbowed point guard, he helped his basketball team win the Chicago City Championships in his senior year. In 1955, he earned a degree in philosophy from Loyola University in Chicago. In 1956, Bob was drafted into the military and became a naval aviator, mainly flying reconnaissance planes over the Pacific Ocean.

In 1965, Bob left the U.S. Navy and embarked on a nearly four-decade long career as a pilot for Pan American and Delta Airlines. During a flight to Guatemala, he fell for Pan Am crew member, Hansi de Petra. The two married at the Carmel Mission Basilica in 1970.

Bob and Hansi had their first date on a layover in Honolulu at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel restaurant. For the next 55 years they shared a love for travel, music and even the same birthday. Together they had four children.

The flying life took Bob to many corners of the world, where he collected stories, mementos and lifelong friends. Along the way, he lived in Sausalito, Carmel, Hong Kong, and Berlin, Germany.

While living in Berlin, Bob "flew the corridors" that connected West Berlin and West Germany. He was an enthusiastic ring-leader among the close-knit Pan Am community. He often returned to Kitzbühel, Austria for skiing. On November 9th, 1989, he scaled the Berlin Wall to witness history being made.

In 1992, Bob and his family moved back to Carmel, where he lived ever since. He never went long without a phone call to a friend from Chicago, the Navy, the airlines or anyone he just met.

Bob and Hansi kept traveling through the years. He kept up with Hansi's marathons by organizing their travel all over the globe. He met regularly with his group of former Pan Am pilots in Berlin who liked to call themselves "the Lost Battalion."

He could recite countless poems, limericks, puns, jokes and riddles – many of which were collected in small pocket notebooks.

To his close-knit Fenwick teammates and lifelong friends, he was tough, witty, creative and particularly imaginative when it came to finding ways to participate in unique social occasions. As a real original "wedding crasher," one might have spotted him mingling at the Buick Salesmen of North America convention of 1954, among other events. In general, he operated on a "no ticket" philosophy for sporting and other events and tried his best to pass this mindset on to his children.

In Bob's later years, he volunteered as a docent at the Carmel Mission Basilica. He was also a familiar face at the Monterey Sports Center, where he often spent more time gabbing than exercising.

Bob is survived by his wife Hansi, sons Robert Finn, Peter, and John, daughter Kathleen Dietrich, and brother Thomas. He has five grandchildren.

The family wishes to thank Rosa Taufahema for her steadfast caretaking during Bob's final two years.

Bob treasured his friends. One dear friend, Dr. Philip Held, has done remarkable work to study and address the issue of kidney transplant wait-times. Those who wish to honor Bob can make a donation to Waitlist Zero at http://waitlistzero.org/contribute/. Or in keeping with his style, call an old friend to reminisce about the good times.

A memorial service will be held at the Carmel Mission Basilica on Tuesday, May 21, 2024 at 10 am.