Mom traveling to son’s college graduation dies in Missouri car crash. ‘I miss her’
In the hallway of Marvies “Nette” Garrett’s house in Carthage, Texas, sits a small table overflowing with her son’s trophies and awards from his basketball career.
Loved ones always joked it was her “shrine” to Anthony Riggans, her only son, who was following in her footsteps with his love of the game.
Nette’s support for Riggans compelled her to make the 15-hour drive from Texas to South Dakota for his graduation ceremony last weekend. But her journey was cut short by tragedy.
Just north of Burlington Junction, Missouri, Nette, 59, died in a car crash on U.S. 71 Highway. Her SUV collided with another SUV head-on, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The two vehicles caught fire after the crash.
The highway patrol reported that two female occupants of the other SUV, 67 and 76 years old, also died in the crash. The male driver of the second vehicle, 72, was hospitalized with serious injuries. Their identities were not made public.
Burlington Junction is about a 1-hour, 45-minute drive from Kansas City.
The sudden loss of Nette has ripped through her family, who are grieving a “selfless, devoted mother,” who got along with almost anyone, but “wasn’t afraid to tell you how it is.”
“Anthony was her life, and she was bound and determined to get to South Dakota to watch him walk across the stage,” said Megan Luther, a friend of the family.
A devoted mother
Luther’s family was a host family for Riggans when he transferred to Dakota Wesleyan University from junior college in Texas. They helped support Riggans as he adjusted to living in a new place.
Over the years, Luther developed a close relationship with Riggans and Nette. She got to see the kind of mother Nette was at both basketball games and the dinner table.
When Riggans left home to chase his college and basketball dreams, Nette never stopped working to make sure her son had what he needed, Luther said.
“When Nette was there, at his games, all these people would come and greet her and say what an amazing kid her son is,” Luther said.
Riggans’ coach, Sam Nicholson, head coach at Dakota Wesleyan, said he knew Nette as a role model of a parent. She made sacrifices and helped build character in her son that translated well on the court and in life, Nicholson said.
“He’s got a unique resiliency to him … he felt the love from his mother, and I think he felt the love from our guys and our staff, and he would always get through the hard things to come out on top,” Nicholson said.
Nicholson was with Riggans when he ultimately decided not to walk the stage at graduation and instead travel home to be with family.
The university held a moment of silence in Nette’s honor at the ceremony.
Nette was ‘a force’
Nette grew up in a large family, with seven siblings. Her brother Tony Garrett, 60, said that she was the kind of person who “anybody that didn’t know would have loved to know.”
Garrett said Nette connected easily with people and had a positive influence on those around her.
Growing up, she was his constant shadow. One year and three days younger, she always followed him, trying to do whatever he did and be better at it, Garrett said.
Garrett described his sister as a devoted and grounded mother. After her divorce, she essentially raised Riggans on her own, with help from family. She always made sure her son was taken care of, even when it was hard, Garrett said.
“She didn’t miss a game,” Garrett said. “She was very, very proud of Anthony, and I am too.”
Nette was also a formidable athlete and presence in her own right. She stood well over 6 feet tall and played basketball for four years at Texas A&M University. She was once good enough to land a contract to play overseas, but a knee injury ended that path, Garrett said.
Overall, Garrett said he wants people to remember Nette as a good parent and loving sister whose loss hurts deeply.
“As a sibling, I’m telling you, I miss her right now,” Garrett said. “She’ll be remembered for the love that she had for her family and her son. She loved all of us.”
A GoFundMe page was created to help cover funeral expenses. On Thursday, the page had received enough donations from South Dakota, Texas and beyond that the family requested that the fundraiser end.
“(Riggans) is very appreciative of the generosity. … I think (the donations) speak volumes to the good human beings that Anthony and Net are,” Luther said.
