New sidewalk dedicated to late Carol Stream cyclist

It was a somber, but perhaps uplifting experience Friday for members of Mike Rigdon's family.

A sidewalk built along Pleasant Hill Road in unincorporated Milton Township was dedicated in Rigdon's name and was a reflection of his family's diligent efforts to make the area where he was killed safer for others.

Rigdon died in June 2008 when his bicycle was struck by a car along that stretch of road. The 53-year-old Carol Stream man had been riding his bike toward the Illinois Prairie Path and his job in Glen Ellyn when the accident happened.

At the time, there was no sidewalk along that portion of Pleasant Hill Road. The new sidewalk provides safer access to the Prairie Path by connecting existing walks to the north and south.

Township Supervisor Chris Heidorn noted during the dedication that the ceremony was the first of its kind for the township.

Within days after Rigdon's death, his family started a campaign to convince officials that significant improvements needed to be made to the intersection of Pleasant Hill and Armbrust Avenue. They gathered nearly 500 signatures on a petition that was submitted to various governmental entities.