Nicholas Rieger
November 26, 1937 – October 5, 2022
Nicholas Carl Rieger 1937-2022
Our handsome-as-a-movie star father, Nick Rieger passed away just shy of 85 years old. Trying
to summarize this complex man would require more skill than we possess. Suffice to say, he
was an old school, circa 1950’s, patriotic American man of his time. He was a detective with the
Chicago Police Department, on the job for 33 years, and at his very core a strong protector. He
would take a bullet for anyone, anytime, it was simply his nature.
Our dad loved his family fiercely, we would joke that Dad’s love was akin to Lenny petting the
kitten in “Of Mice and Men”, it was intense. He was loyal and honest and excelled at helping
people. Nick loved to fish and hunt as a younger man, and boating with his buddies. In
Norwood Park or down in Lely, small kids always became his friend and us siblings were always
baffled by it and would laugh, because he was so grumpy so often. But they just loved him, and
he loved them. We think that it was because of that intensity, when he focused on you, he
really was giving you his all. And that is something our dad did really well, give his all. The good
Lord saw fit to make this good man our dad, and we are grateful for each moment, including the hard ones.
We have prayed long and hard over dad these recent days and had prayed together to the Lord
Jesus Christ. We are trusting his precious soul to God in Heaven. With that said, we will go
forward with enough peace, but will miss him the rest of our lives. We think Dad passed away
in part of a broken heart, because he missed our dear mom so much. She hasn’t yet been gone
two years, and he died on what would have been their 59th wedding anniversary.
A memorial service will be held to celebrate Nick’s life at 4:00 pm on November 26, 2022 at the St. John’s Episcopal Church on 500 Park Shore Drive, Naples, FL 34103.
Nancy and Kathy
February 14, 2023, 1:42 pm
Deeply regretting that we are unable to attend the memorial service, we are having these trees planted as a living memorial to Uncle Nick. With love,
Dawn Muslovski
February 14, 2023, 1:42 pm
You will truly be missed Mr Rieger
Greg & Karen Salvi
February 14, 2023, 1:42 pm
We worked with Nick at Area 5. He was a great Detective. We loved him for so many reasons. His humor, his loyalty, his kindness. Nick worked with us in Naples for several years and was a blessing to us. As a police partner, an employee, as a friend, he was the best. We miss him.