Deaton Rigsby

Preston Deaton Rigsby
Member of the Lubbock City Council
In office 1968–1972
Born	July 5, 1932 Hamilton County, Texas, USA
Died	May 6, 2019 (aged 86) Lubbock, Texas
Resting place	Lubbock Cemetery Mausoleum.
Nationality	American
Spouse(s)	(1) Betty Laruth Faubion Tanner (divorced in 1975) (2) Jan Louise Reeves Rigsby (married 1975; surviving widow)
Children	From first marriage: Shelly Bruccoliere Sharla D'Ann Freeman From second marriage: Renee Emmett Julie Bille Brandon McGill Patrick Rigsby Parents: Preston and Grace Deaton Rigsby
Residence	Lubbock, Texas
Alma mater	Evant High School Texas Tech University
Occupation	Businessman
Religion	Episcopalian

Preston Deaton Rigsby , known as Deaton Rigsby (July 5, 1932 – May 6, 2019) was a businessman and politician in his adopted city of Lubbock, Texas. He served on both the Lubbock City Council and the board of the Lubbock Independent School District, both non-partisan positions.

Background

Reared on a farm in his native Hamilton County, Texas, Rigsby was the only son of Preston Delbert Rigsby (1906-1950) and the former Grace Gertrude Deaton (1906-2001). His father deserted the family during the Great Depression, and his mother worked in the clothing industry. In 1944, she wed Jack Cates and acquired a third daughter, the late Vivian Wynell Cates Brandt. Deaton Rigsby had two older sisters, Carolyn R. Thompson (1927-2016) and Laura Jo Rigsby Hollis Key Henderson (1930-2016), born in Quanah in Hardeman County and known mainly as Laura Key. Her second husband, William C. Key, died in 1990. Laura Key was stricken with polio at the age of twenty-five but worked in public education as an elementary math and science teacher, a guidance counselor, and a diagnostician in Gifted/Talented and Special Education.

Rigsby graduated from Evant High School in his native Hamilton County, Texas, and began his studies at Texas Tech University in Lubbock from which he earned his bachelor's degree in 1954 and thereafter a master's. Upon the completion of his studies Rigsby enlisted in the United States Army.

Career

After military service, Rigsby returned to Lubbock to work in the insurance business. In 1984, he joined Schneider, Burnet and Hickman as a stock broker.

In 1951, Rigsby married the former Betty Laruth Faubion; (born 1934). The couple had two daughters, Shelley Renee and Sharla D'Ann. They were divorced in March 1975. Laruth, as she is known, then married Bill G. Tanner in Lynn County, south of Lubbock, four months after the divorce was final. In 1974, Deaton had met Jan Louise Reeves (born November 3, 1943), who became his second wife; they were married for forty-four years until his death. From the second marriage came four other children, Renee Emmett, Julie Bille, Brandcon McGill, and Patrick Rigsby.

On May 11, 1970, a devastating tornado struck Lubbock and claimed twenty-six lives. It took years to repair the damage inflicted on the city. During the ordeal, Rigsby was the newly named mayor pro tem and one of the younger city council members. Then Mayor Jim Granberry described Rigsby as his "right-hand man" in the aftermath of the tornado. After his city council tenure ended, he served for seven years on the school board during the time of mandated school busing in the name of racial balance. Current Lubbock Mayor Dan Pope noted that Rigsby was a founding member of Voice of Hope: Lubbock Rape Crisis Center.

Zach Brady, the president of the Lubbock ISD trustees described in a statement as "a dedicated public servant, devoting years of leadership to the community and public education. He was a real gentleman who was selfless with his time and energy for the betterment of Lubbock and Lubbock ISD."