Obituary of Lee Edward Staggs

Lee Staggs died on April 4, 2020, a few weeks short of his 91st birthday at Sunrise Senior Living of Ft. Worth. He was born in Detroit, Michigan to Eunice and Glen Staggs, both now deceased. He married Barbara Graham in 1954 in California, delighted to find his equal in intellectual stubbornness, and moved to Ft. Worth with Barbara and their three daughters 12 years later, to escape the smog, and revel in the wide-open skies He had a fierce love of adventure, knowledge, truth and language, which kept him biking, swimming, hiking, backpacking, reviving old Volvos, and animatedly discussing current affairs through most of his life. Lee wrote a steady stream of beautiful minimalist vignettes to keep in touch with friends and daughters by mail. He was a devoted husband and father, writing love notes to Barbara on the kitchen chalkboard that he couldn’t bear to erase after her death in 1989, and instilling in his daughters a strong morality based on kindness, justice, equality and respect. He is survived by three daughters (Cathi Staggs, Brigid Hejl and Suzanne Staggs), and four grandchildren (Cory and Bryce Hejl, Zoë and Sarah Staggs).