Submitted by his wife Diana

Jeffrey Tiegs was the heart of his family‚ friends‚ community and his fire department. Jeff died on November 24‚ 2003 in the line of duty while responding to an automobile accident on Hwy 10 and Hwy 161 near Amherst Junction‚ Wisconsin. He is remembered as a good friend to many people and will never be forgotten.

Jeff loved helping others and was a dedicated volunteer firefighter for 11 years. He was also an active member in the Portage County Fire Investigation Task Force for 3 years. Fire Chief Victor Voss had this to say about Jeff: ‘The fire department must go on as anyone who loses someone must do. We have had many calls since losing Jeff and we are now realizing how much we counted on Jeff. All of the little things he did‚ that we took for granted‚ now must be done by someone else. It is our job as firefighters to go on. Jeff will never be forgotten here and his memory lives on in stories‚ pictures and in our hearts. Jeff’s wife Diana is still volunteering and doing what Jeff loved to do. Everything at the fire station has Jeff’s fingerprints on it and memories are not hard to come by. Jeff is here! The fire department is a grieving family that has lost one of our own – our brother Jeff was lost. He loved being a firefighter and hated to miss any event that the department was involved in. In the 11 years Jeff worked as a volunteer firefighter‚ he only missed a handful of calls. That means hundreds of calls were answered by him. When something or someone needed help‚ Jeff was there. If anything was going on at the station he was there. If the trucks needed service‚ the station needed cleaning‚ the parking lot needed washing or a truck needed to be in a parade‚ Jeff was there! Jeff was there!’

Jeff and I were married for 25 years. He was a devoted to me‚ our daughter Nichole and her husband Ron Worthey‚ Jr.‚ our daughter Jennifer and her husband to be Freddie Seymour and our son Kyle. Jeff had 3 grandchildren – Bryan‚ Amanda and Robert. He spent many hours teaching Bryan CPR and how to be a firefighter. Amanda was the only granddaughter and the apple of her grandfather’s eye. Robert is Jeff’s youngest grandchild. We know that Jeff is now in heaven cuddling and caring for his youngest grandson who preceded him in death.

A memorial fund has been established in Jeff’s name at the International Bank of Amherst‚ Amherst‚ Wisconsin 54406.