Garland T. Riggs

Garland T. Riggs passed away peacefully on May 22, 2026, following a period of declining health.

Garland was born on December 31,1942, to the late Dr. William G. Talmage and The Reverend Nancy (Anne) R. Talmage at Dover General Hospital in Dover, New Jersey. She graduated from St. John Baptist School in Mendham, NJ, and received a degree in Biology from Randolph Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia. Garland began her career as a biology researcher at Max Planck Institute in Munich, Germany. While working there she met her future husband, Tony, who was exploring Europe. After three years at Max Planck, Garland returned to the United States and began working at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

Garland was a 57-year member of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Hyattsville, MD, and a longtime participant in the choir. Garland enjoyed singing with the church choir, camping, flower arranging, and stained glass. She was also a member of St. John Baptist Community.

In addition to her parents, Garland was proceeded in death by her sister, Anne M. Talmage, brother-in-law, Richard (Monk) Montgomery, and sister-in-law, Barbara Montgomery.

Left to cherish her memory are her husband, Anthony Riggs, daughter Elizabeth Riggs Weatherby, son-in-law Theodore Weatherby, her nieces, Victoria Freund, Maria Sudol, Katherine Archambault and Margaret Montovan, and nephew Benjamin Montgomery.

Friends and family may visit on Thursday, June 18 (4:00–8:00PM), at Gasch’s Funeral Home, 4739 Baltimore Ave. Hyattsville, MD. A funeral service will be held on Friday, June 19, at 11:00AM, at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, 5901 36th Avenue, Hyattsville, MD. Garland will be buried with her family on June 24, at 1:00PM, at the First Presbyterian Church Cemetery, 99 Main Street, Succasunna, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Garland’s memory to a charity of your choice.