'She was sweet and always smiling'
Sigler remembered by friends, co-workers
DIXON – Yolanda Sigler had a knack for helping people, especially when it came to staying fit.
The 34-year-old Dixon woman, found dead in her home at 230 Lincolnway Sunday afternoon, was a certified personal trainer who provided her services to co-workers at Crest Foods in Ashton, where she had worked for 7 years.
"She was in the business of helping people," said Jennifer Van Oosten, co-owner of CrossFit Rock River in Dixon. "She had a very, very giving personality."
Police say her husband, Brian C. Sigler, 34, killed her, then tried to kill himself. He was in KSB Hospital Monday being treated for life-threatening stab wounds to the neck and abdomen.
Those who knew Yolanda Sigler flocked to Facebook Monday to share memories and condolences.
The couple graduated from Dixon High School in spring 1997 and married that Aug. 9, according to Sauk Valley Media archives. They have a 10-year-old son.
Yolanda, daughter of Tim and Joyce Kiesling of Dixon, enlisted in the Illinois National Guard in December 1995 and worked as a motor transportation operator with the 1644th Transportion Company. She was honorably discharged as an E5 in December 2001, according to a Guard spokesman.
She worked at Crest Foods for 7 years in the contract packaging division. Brian Sigler has been with the company for 6 years in the dairy ingredient division.
"Certainly everyone is shocked and saddened by today's news," said Gary Guenther, director of human resources at Crest. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family."
Guenther said the Siglers were "good people" and very well-liked by their co-workers.
Yolanda Sigler and Van Oosten, 33, of Grand Detour, went to Polo High School together until Yolanda moved to Dixon their sophomore year. They reconnected in November when Sigler joined her gym, which Van Oosten has owned for 7 months.
"One of the most memorable things I remember is that her personality hadn't changed over the years," Van Oosten said. "She was sweet and always smiling, and had such a pleasant demeanor."
Her personality apparently rubbed off on her 10-year-old son, Van Oosten said.
"She would bring him by the gym and you could tell that he was exactly like her. I said, 'Oh my gosh, you are definitely her child.'"
Sigler talked to staff Saturday about getting certified as a yoga teacher and teaching classes at the gym, Van Oosten said.
Van Oosten, who also served in the military, said the gym plans to honor Sigler's memory by naming a workout after her.
