Tim Riggenbach might seem like a contradiction when it comes to his interpretation of The American Dream. For Riggenbach, 50, a bank manager for Associated Bank, money has nothing to do with his vision.
“Obviously, The American Dream means different things to different people. For me, it means being surrounded by the people you care most about,” he said.
“It’s about having satisfaction in your heart you did the right thing at the end of the day. That’s my version of The American Dream.”
Planting an idea
Riggenbach grew up in East Peoria wanting to be a pilot.
Being a bank manager, a county board member and soon the new 3rd District council member were never in Riggenbach’s young dreams.
But, he said, a family of his own was a dream for as far back as he can remember.
That idea was planted, he said, by his grandmother, parents and aunts and uncles.
“When my dad was 13, his dad died. It was the middle of the Depression. They all had to pull together,” Riggenbach said.
“I saw with my parents how satisfying having a family was.”
Riggenbach’s grandparents had 10 children.
As each married, they were given a tract of land near their parents’ home in East Peoria.
Riggenbach said his parents and five of the other children built homes on those tracts of land so grandma and five sets of aunts and uncles and cousins were always nearby as he grew up. 
“Family was our life,” he said.
Though Riggenbach now calls North Peoria home, his love of family has stayed strong.
“As I talk to people in my banker capacity, I hear them say they want a bigger home, a better car. I think what this country has gone through in the past six months has illustrated how temporary those things are. Family is not,” he said.
Riggenbach said he has a nice home, two cars and a dog.
“That, however, does not define who we are,” he said.
“I have three girls. I don’t want them to grow up thinking life is just about money. My parents impacted the next generation with the idea family is the important thing. If I can impact the next generation with the same idea, that will be a dream fulfilled. That is not a destination. It’s a process.”

Luck involved?
Riggenbach said his 12-year-old twin girls have vocational dreams.
One wants to be an actress, the other a lawyer.
“When you’re a kid kicking around your dream job, they go for high-profile occupations,” Riggenbach said.
“Part of the maturing process is realizing that’s not what’s going to bring you satisfaction.”
That is something Riggenbach learned.
After college, Riggenbach worked on the trading floor of the Chicago Board of Trade.
“That was the ‘80s, the time when greed was good,” Riggenbach said.
“I saw people with obscene amounts of money. You’d think that was The American Dream. But, they weren’t happy.”
Riggenbach paused and smiled when asked if luck had any part to play in his striving toward his American Dream.
“There’s a fine line between luck and providence. My wife and I met on a blind date,” he said.
His wife, who grew up in Switzerland, wanted to learn conversational English and worked to find a way to get to the U.S. working as a nanny.
“She had friends with relatives in Peoria. She was staying with Dan and Katie Maloof. Katie is a good friend of my sister. Katie told my sister she had a girl I should meet. The rest is history,” he said.
“It’s really interesting how so many things in your life can mesh the way they do. Now I have children to instill values in. The way we are raising our daughters, they are being shown being involved is what life is about.”