PALLBEARERS
Arthur Dowell Arthur Small Dowell Melvin Wilson Jonathan Long Desmond Sumrall David Smith
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The family of Herbert Leroy Riggs
Would like to express their appreciation and gratitude to everyone for their outpouring of love, support, sympathy and prayers during our time of bereavement. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and lifted in prayer.
May God Bless and Keep You!
The Family
490 Columbia Road, Boston, MA 02125 www floydawilliamsfuneralhome com F U N E R A L A R R A N G E M E N T S E N T R U S T E D T O :
Avery Riggs
Ronald Riggs
Psalm 23 (KJV)
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
John 14:1-6 (NIV)
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God[a]; believe also in me.
2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Herb was also a home inspector for over 25 years. He was one of the founders of Advanced Building Inspectors (ABI), where he worked alongside his son Ronald Riggs for the last 17 years until illness caused him to stop. Providing people in the community with the tools and knowledge to obtain homeownership was his passion and lifelong mission.
Herb had a strong personal relationship with the Lord. He was a huge supporter of Blue Hill Missionary Baptist Church where he often claimed the shepherd of the house, Pastor Joseph R. Lloyd, as “his” pastor. Herb was a constant source of encouragement during the church conference calls every Sunday. Although he didn’t have the opportunity to stand before the congregation and officially join, it was very clear that was his intention once the church reopened. His openness, honesty, and steadfast praise were truly inspirational, and Pastor Lloyd designated Herb as the honorary Father of the Church shortly before his passing.
Herb was preceded in death by his parents John A. Riggs Sr. and Jerrothia Riggs; sisters Annetta Braxton, Elizabeth Riggs, and Dianne Wilson; sisters-in-law Charlotte Riggs and Loretta Riggs; and niece Lovell Riggs.
Herb leaves to cherish his memory, loving wife Julia Riggs; son Ronald (Barbara) Riggs; daughter Dana (Arthur) Dowell; grandchildren Arthur Small Dowell, Ariana Small Dowell, Avery Riggs, Amber Riggs, Aaron Dowell, and Raven Riggs; greatgrandchildren Logan Mincey, Tanari Small Dowell and Mona Haney; brothers John Riggs Jr. and Richard (Cynthia) Riggs; sister Barbara Riggs; and a host of nieces, nephews, and friends.
Herb was the patriarch and the backbone of his family. He will forever be missed.
O B I T U A R Y
Herbert Leroy Riggs
November 2, 1946 – January 6, 2023
Herbert Leroy Riggs, affectionately known as “Herbie” or “Herb”, was born to the late John Adolphus Riggs Sr. and Jerrothia (Allenfonzo) Riggs on November 2, 1946, in Camden, NJ. Herb peacefully departed this life on January 6, 2023 and began his eternal life with our Lord and Savior.
Herb graduated from Camden High School in 1965 and joined the United States Navy that same year. He served aboard the USS Diamond Head during the Vietnam War. After four years of active service, Herb was honorably discharged and went on to attend Rutgers University and then Boston State College after relocating to Boston, MA.
Herb married the love of his life Julia Ann (Williams) Riggs, who he affectionately called “Julie” in 1967. To that union a son Ronald Dean Riggs and a daughter Dana Michele (Riggs) Dowell were born.
Herb helped create one of the first “1st Time Homebuyer Classes” in the city of Boston during the late 1980s and early 1990s for three non-profit organizations, Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse (VBC), the Freedom House and Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DSNI).
Herb worked for the American Arbitration Association in the early 1990s, mediating for the victims of the highly publicized Boston Mortgage Scam that took place in the late 1980s. Herb partnered with his good friend, George Bullock, to create one of Boston’s first black-owned mortgage companies called City Mortgages, Inc. He also partnered with his best friend, Walter Long, in owning and operating several real estate agencies over the years.
ORDER OF SERVICE
Rev. Willie Bodrick, II, J.D., M. Div. , Officiating Twelfth Baptist Church
Pastor Joseph R. Lloyd, Eulogist Blue Hill Missionary Baptist Church Processional Clergy Invocation
Pastor Willie Bodrick II Twelfth Baptist Church Scripture Reading • Old Testament Psalm 23 Patrick Carries
John 14 :1-6 Raven Riggs
Dorothy Isles Smith
Star Baptist
Pastor Joseph R. Lloyd Blue Hill Missionary Baptist Church Benediction
Pastor Joseph R. Lloyd Blue Hill Missionary Baptist Church
COMMITTAL SERVICE
Mount Hope Cemetery Boston, MA
O R D E R O F S E R V I C E
Say
• New Testament
Prayer of Comfort Pastor
Assistant Pastor Morning
Church Remarks Acknowledgements Deaconess Andrea Turner Selection “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” Deaconess Karen Rezendes Obituary Carlton Sumrall Selection “Blessed Assurance” Rogelio Whittington (Played by Trumpet) Selection “He'll Understand and
Well Done” Jonathan Gramling Eulogy
Recessional
The Bridge Builder
By Will Allen Dromgoole
An Old Man Going A Lone Highway, Came, At The Evening Cold And Gray, To A Chasm Vast And Deep And Wide. Through Which Was Flowing A Sullen Tide The Old Man Crossed In The Twilight Dim, The Sullen Stream Had No Fear For Him; But He Turned When Safe On The Other Side And Built A Bridge To Span The Tide.
“Old Man,” Said A Fellow Pilgrim Near, “You Are Wasting Your Strength With Building Here; Your Journey Will End With The Ending Day, You Never Again Will Pass This Way; You’ve Crossed The Chasm, Deep And Wide, Why Build This Bridge At Evening Tide?”
The Builder Lifted His Old Gray Head; “Good Friend, In The Path I Have Come,” He Said, “There Followed After Me To-Day A Youth Whose Feet Must Pass This Way. This Chasm That Has Been As Naught To Me To That Fair-Haired Youth May A Pitfall Be; He, Too, Must Cross In The Twilight Dim; Good Friend, I Am Building This Bridge For Him!”
