White Funeral Home
1315 Main Street
Jesup, Iowa 50648

Dunkerton – Kathleen J. Rigdon, 81 of Dunkerton, IA, died Monday, January 16, 2017, at the Oelwein Care Center, Oelwein, IA, where she was a resident the past 3 years.

Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m. – Saturday, January 21, 2017, at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Bennington Township, 4110 East Mt. Vernon Road, Waterloo, IA.  Burial will be at Fairview Cemetery Dunkerton.

Memorials will be directed to St. John’s Lutheran Church and to the Oelwein Care Center.

Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Friday, January 20^th at the White Funeral home, 1315 Main Street, Jesup, IA, and for an hour before services Saturday at the church.

Kathleen was born June 11, 1935, in Cresco, IA, the daughter of Kasper Johnson and Jeannetta (Hoines) Johnson.  She grew up in the rural Lime Springs, IA, area and attended school there.  Her family attended Saetersdal Lutheran Church in Harmony, MN, where she joined the Lutheran faith.  She graduated from high school in 1953.  On April 17, 1955, she was united in marriage to Kenneth Lee Rigdon, at Saetersdal Lutheran Church in Harmony.  She was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Bennington Township, Waterloo, IA.  Over the years, Kathleen worked in the payroll department at Rath Packing Company; at Smith’s Flower Shop; she also worked at all four Dunkerton Branch Banks, retiring from Farmers State Bank in 2003.  She also found time to be a farm hand and farm chef.  She is a Past Black Hawk County Farm Bureau Women’s Chairman and a past member of the Black Hawk County Zoning Board.

Kathleen is survived by her husband, Kenneth Rigdon of Dunkerton; one daughter, Rhonda Webber of Eldridge, IA; two sons, Randall (Barbara) Rigdon and Scott (Suzanne) Rigdon of Dunkerton; 10 grandchildren, Becky (Clint) Senteney, Jaime Eldridge, Benjamin Eldridge, Megan Eldridge, Amanda (Andrew) Everts, Holly (Matthew) Knudsen, Amber (Zachary) Heideman, Dylan Rigdon, Monica (Tony) Endres, and Jennifer (Shawn) Metz; 13 great grandchildren; three sisters, Elaine Moser of Lime Springs, LaVonne (Stan) Biel of Durand, WI, Beverly (Bob) Warnke of Chisago City, MN; also three sisters in law, Cheryl Rigdon of Shady Side, MD, Carol Rigdon of Dunkerton, and Marian (Glen) Ponder of Newton, IA.

She is preceded in death by her parents; one great granddaughter, Aurora Jean Everts; and one son in law, Mike Webber; and three brothers in law, William Moser, Roland Rigdon and Robert Rigdon.

Kathleen was an avid fan of Norwegian heritage and foods, she loved cooking, baking and hosting dinner parties in her home.  She also loved to garden.  One of many highlights in her life was a trip to Norway with all of her sisters, daughter, nieces, and a cousin.