Mildred Laitinen Wiggert died on Dec. 12, 2023. She was born on May 8, 1931, the sixth child of Albin and Hilma Fredman Laitinen in Negaunee Township, Mich.
She grew up in this rural Finnish community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She received her Bachelor’s of Arts in education from the University of Michigan and later received her Master’s of Arts in elementary education from Virginia Tech.
Besides her parents and siblings, she was preceded in death by her husband, James Miller Wiggert, and granddaughter, Hannah Katharina Wiggert Duban.
She is survived by her son, John (Jeanette) Wiggert; daughters, Jane (Miller) Williams, Sarah (Mark) Duban, and Elizabeth Wiggert; grandchildren, James Whitaker (Jen Simonetti), Rachel (Kaleb) Shrader, Jessica Wiggert, and Jamie Wiggert; great-grandchildren, Hannah Renee Bishop and Landon Wayne Bishop; special daughter Trang Le (Thai Dao)and numerous nieces and nephews.
A memorial will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, anyone wishing to do so may send a contribution to: Luther Memorial Lutheran Church, 600 Prices Fork Rd., Blacksburg, VA 24060; or League of Women Voters of Montgomery County, P.O. Box 10133, Blacksburg, VA 24060; or Alzheimer’s Association, P.O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090.
