Her family was with her when Mary Margaret Struk Niggles died at home in Wainscott on July 6 after a long illness. She was 91.
Mrs. Niggles was born on April 14, 1931, the daughter of the former Anna Machno from Austria and Antonin Struk, who emigrated from an area known today as Ukraine but that was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Her parents met in Riverhead, which at the time had a large community of immigrants from Europe. They married, moved to Bridgehampton, and started a family and a life together farming.
Mrs. Niggles grew up with her 10 siblings on the Struk family farm on Hildreth Lane in Bridgehampton. Her father farmed land from Water Mill to Amagansett. “All the children helped out and spent summers working the land and enjoying the beach,” her family wrote.
She attended the Bridgehampton School and Becker College in Massachusetts, and met her future husband, Albert A. Niggles of Wainscott, at the Candy Kitchen in Bridgehampton.
After graduating from college she returned to Bridgehampton. She and Mr. Niggles were married on July 5, 1951, and settled in Wainscott, where they raised two sons and three daughters.
Mrs. Niggles played in bridge clubs in East Hampton, Wainscott, and Bridgehampton and was a lifelong member of the Wainscott Sewing Society. Her favorite pastime was spending time with family at the beach. “Her children and grandchildren loved spending days swimming, walking, and just enjoying time together with her,” her family wrote.
She is survived by her husband, her children, Daniel Niggles, Diana Niggles Jacon, Charles Niggles, Doreen Niggles, and Debra Niggles, and by seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
A private graveside service was held on Monday at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery in East Hampton. Her family has suggested donations to the Wainscott Sewing Society to support its efforts to take flowers to homebound and elderly members. The address is P.O. Box 273, Wainscott 11975.
