George Febiger Riess

George Febiger Riess, a trial attorney and poet, died on February 5, 2024, of complications from a fall he took several years ago. He was 80 years old. He is survived by his wife, Cheryl Lambert Riess; three children, Frank Henry Riess, Carson Magee Riess (Nikki), and Maida Jean Riess (Michael Gottwald); three stepchildren, Anna Shea Wilson Schnitzler (Ian), Gabrielle Wilson Schnepper (Max), and Trevor Doran Wilson (Cholly); four siblings, Kell Riess (Lucy), Bonnie Riess Pope (Bill, deceased), Michael Riess (Donna) and Margaret Riess Meyerson (Lee); many nieces and nephews and seven grandchildren, ages 10 to newborn, all of whom adored him. He is predeceased by his former wife, Maida Magee Riess, who died in 1999. George was born in New Orleans and called the city home for his entire life. He was an innately gifted storyteller and often told the same stories over and over again with so much flourish he never bored anyone. As a child, he rode the St. Charles Avenue streetcar to piano lessons with his grandmother, Una Kelly Kelleher, which instilled in him a love of music. He once rode his single-speed bicycle down the Huey P. Long Bridge, which nurtured a love of defiance and adventure. George played football at Isidore Newman School (he graduated the year they beat St. Martin's, after Bill Brown intercepted Dick Hesse's pass). He studied English at Tulane University, where he was somehow both a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon and, secretly, an acapella group. He graduated from Louisiana State University Law School and defended draft evaders during the Vietnam War. In 1975, he worked with a local nonprofit to sue Dupont for illegal dumping in Bay St. Louis. He established a legal aid clinic in Michigan and took on many pro bono legal clients over the course of his career in New Orleans, especially after Hurricane Katrina. He went on to have partnerships in Polack, Rosenberg, Endom and Riess, LLP; Monroe and Lemann Law Firm; and Johnson and Riess Law Firm. Ultimately, he opened his own practice, George F. Riess and Associates. When asked who his "associates" were, he explained that his legal partners were his children and the family boxer, Rigby, whom he brought to his office in the Whitney Bank building when his (and her) schedule allowed. George loved dogs, particularly boxers, whose paws he compared to "the hands of an artist." When Rigby learned how to roll the windows down in his car, George refused to engage the child lock system because he didn't want to "discourage her." Instead, he drove around in a coat all winter long. He loved his kids, who called him "Deedah." He loved literature and music and ice cream and a good hike. He loved things with such force that he frequently described them as "not to be believed." As in, "This poem is not to be believed," "This view," "This wine," "This cracker." He was passionate about Bach, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich and many other composers. He listened to music so loudly that the walls of the house shook while his children were doing their homework. He played piano and composed several of his own works, and he eventually broke down and bought a harpsichord, so that he could play on the instrument that Bach would have used. For years he served on the Board of Directors for the Friends of Music, advocating for the incorporation of original instruments in performances. He was an adjunct professor of trial advocacy at Tulane Law School. He was a parishioner at St. Martin's Episcopal Church where he once served on the vestry. He played racquetball and tennis and coached his kids' soccer teams. At various times, he was a sailor, a runner, a basketball player, a skater, a skier, and a Masters swimmer but, emphatically, was never, ever, a golfer. He turned to poetry in moments of grief and wonder. He wrote about loss, the BP oil spill, the streetcar, and his memories of growing up in New Orleans. He published work in a collaborative collection called "The Quartet." He won first place in a Gulf Coast Writers Association contest for his poem, "Afterlife." He wrote poems everywhere-on the backs of envelopes and in the insides of book jackets. George was also an outstanding chef. When he got the idea for a dish, he cooked it many times, sometimes within a single week, to attempt perfection. This was a blessing to the people who lived with him when the dish was redfish court-bouillon, and less so when it was tomato aspic. The Times-Picayune even published his recipe for vegetable soup. He considered it a public service to fill the house with the smell of good food, and he loved to cook with Cheryl. He loved Sunday night dinners of boiled shrimp and homemade mayonnaise, the family arguing about politics while the Brandenburg Concertos played in the background. He loved gin martinis and had his own recipe printed up on business cards. He loved French wine, Julia Child, and Grey Poupon. George was possibly the last person on earth to use a cellphone as nothing more than a cordless telephone. He did not text, and when his phone rang in his pocket while he was in the middle of a conversation, he acted like it was malfunctioning, asking why it was "going off." He was a force, a character, and an anomaly. He was a loyal friend, a curious listener, and an empath. About himself he used to say, "I may be old, but I'm immature." We wish we could hear him tell stories forever, particularly the one about the time he was a teenager working in construction. He was driving a dump truck and accidentally hit the dump switch, emptying the entire load at the intersection of Nashville and St. Charles Avenue. He made it back to the construction site in record time. We will miss him, but we are lucky that in living so fully he gave us much to remember him by. We will tell stories about him for many, many years to come. A celebration of George's life will take place on Saturday, February 24, 2024, at St. Martin's Episcopal Church (2216 Metairie Road, Metairie, Louisiana). Visitation will begin at noon in McKee Hall, with a service following at 1 pm. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Friends of Music, by clicking the Donate tab on their website: www.friendsofmusic.org.