Roy Wilford Riegle
| Colonel R. Wilford Riegle | |
|---|---|
 52nd Triennial Conclave, Chicago, IL[1] | |
| Born |
April 27, 1896 Rice County, Kansas |
| Died |
February 2, 1988 (aged 91) Lyon County, Kansas |
| Resting place | Leavenworth National Cemetery |
| Residence | Emporia, Kansas |
| Education |
Washburn University (Bachelor of Arts, LL.B., Master of Arts) Kansas State Normal School |
| Years active | 1925–1986 |
| Organization |
The United Religious, Military & Masonic Orders of the Temple and of St. John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes & Malta U.S. Army Legislature of Kansas Senate of Kansas |
| Political party | Republican Party |
| Board member of |
Kansas State Historical Society Lyon County Historical Society |
| Spouse(s) | Keith Maria Roberts |
| Children |
Ardis Gene Riegle Roy Wilford Riegle, Jr. Jo Anna Scherrer[2] Mary Keith Burns |
Roy Wilford Riegle (1896–1988), commonly known as Wilford Riegle, was an American attorney, politician and Member of the Kansas House of Representatives.
He was born in Lyons, KS on April 27, 1896. He began his career working as a Mortician’s assistant in Jetmore, Kansas. After accumulating enough money to begin his path in higher education, he made the move eastward to the city of Emporia.
He met his future wife, Keith, while attending Kansas State Normal School during the 1910s. Before marriage, however, he was called to duty during World War I as part of the United States Army in Company L, 137th Infantry, 35th Division. His love of civic duty and military honor would later lead him to military prestige as a Colonel during World War II - serving in Alabama, Arkansas, Virginia, Alaska, and Korea under a special team championed by General Douglas MacArthur out of the Dai Ichi Building.
Aside from serving as the longest-practicing attorney in Lyons County, Wilford was a Republican member of both the Kansas House of Representatives and the Kansas Senate for multiple terms.
In 1957, he became President of the Kansas State Historical Society.
In 1973, he took office as the Grand Master of the Knights Templar (Freemasonry) both nationally and overseas.
By the end of his judicial career in 1986, he became the longest-serving attorney in the history of Lyon County and, quite possibly, the state of Kansas itself.
After a series of strokes and declining health, Colonel Riegle passed away on February 2, 1988.[3]
 Riegle & Riegle Law (Palace Building) |
 Juneau, AK (World War II) |
_%26_Keith_Maria_Roberts_(Wife).jpg) Jo Anna Riegle-Scherrer (Left) & Keith Maria Riegle (Right) |
For further reference
- ↑ "Knights Templar reference". knightstemplar.org. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
- ↑ "Jo Anna Riegle (1930 - 2011) - Find A Grave Memorial". findagrave.com.
- ↑ "Roy Wilford Riegle papers". Retrieved 20 September 2012.