Column Chronicles: Obituary; Stenforth Rittenrigger

Obituary: Stenforth Rittenrigger

Frank Cotolo
May 28, 2026

He was born Stenforth Rittenrigger but I knew him as Riggy. Most of my friends called him by other names. Riggy liked that people called him other names. He once told me that no one person should be given one first name because it was an insult to nicknames. That is how Riggy thought (or how Stench or Forthy or Ritt or Rigger or Kay Kay Krapper thought).

The fact that no official cause of death was made public does not surprise me. Riggy never believed that any one thing caused the death of any one person. He told me he thought death was just something that happened to all living things one time or another. At heart he was a philosopher though he made a living repairing shoes.

He used to tell me that being a great author or painter or actor or scientist was not as important as repairing shoes. He said to me that "no matter what you do for a living you need shoes" and "too many people buy new shoes when old ones wear down" and they were people not to be trusted.

Riggy knew shoes inside out. He made old shoes look and feel new and considered that a bigger contribution to mankind that landing a man on the moon. When he turned 50 me and the guys gave him a gold-plated shoe as a trophy. He thanked us but said that "one shoe is no shoe unless it belongs to a pair."

I miss Riggy for many reasons. First and foremost because he won't be around any more. I mourn his absence along with his family and other friends no matter what they called him. And I dedicate every step I take for the rest of my life to Riggy.

Frank Cotolo can be found hosting the talk and interview programme Cotolo Chronicles. You can send him an e-mail at this address: frank@148.ca.