Sean Joseph Lanigan

Sean Lanigan, 31, of Weems, Virginia and formerly of Saranac Lake, NY, passed away on August 4, 2024 at Rappahannock General Hospital in Kilmarnock, Virginia. He had been out for an evening run and suffered a sudden cardiac arrest.

Sean was born on April 21, 1993, in Plattsburgh, NY, to John and Nora Hennessy Lanigan. He grew up in the healthy small-town culture of Saranac Lake, where he was nurtured by the community’s family daycare providers, teachers, and coaches. As a boy, Sean explored so many activities that brought him joy. He hiked, swam, biked, skied, sledded, and skated. Sean played soccer, tennis, golf, lacrosse, rugby, basketball and football in youth programs and with friends and family. He played on the school soccer, basketball, and lacrosse teams all through high school. Blessed with a beautiful singing voice, Sean also excelled musically, singing in chorus and the select Men’s Ensemble. He had great fun in the school musical, Guys and Dolls. Chorus was the class he looked forward to every day.

After High School, Sean attended SUNY New Paltz where he lived with the International Student crew and made many close friends from all over the world.

Sean started his professional life at 15, busing tables at Whiteface Club. He worked at The Point on Upper Saranac Lake and then, after college, went to Raquette Lake where, as Maitre d’, he helped open the historic Adirondack Great Camp “Lake Kora” as a luxury lodging property. When Kora closed each winter, Sean travelled to the company’s New Zealand property, Annandale, at Akaroa, for the southern hemisphere’s summer season.

After three years of this travel, Sean met Amy Rudd and soon joined her in North Carolina, where he worked at Elon University, opening the restaurant at the new Inn at Elon. From there, he and Amy moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, and Sean joined Marigold, the brand-new restaurant at beautiful Keswick Hall resort. This April, Sean and Amy moved again when he became General Manager of, and opened, the new Salt and Meadow restaurant at the extraordinary Tides Inn in Irvington, Virginia.

Sean was very dedicated to his work, but continued to pursue other lifelong passions. He was an avid sports fan and supported the NY Giants and Knicks, Duke U, and Everton. He was a serious sports card collector. He had climbed several of the Adirondack High Peaks. Sean read widely, from Game of Thrones to organized crime, to sports biographies. He maintained his childhood love of Harry Potter. Sean loved travel and had enjoyed trips with his dad to Uruguay and Australia. With Amy, Sean found that every trip was the trip of a lifetime. Their recent destinations included Montreal, Slovenia and Croatia, and also Costa Rica. Sean loved sharing his interests, and lived his life with great enthusiasm.

Sean is survived by his beloved fiancée, Amy Rudd of Weems, Virginia. 

He is also survived by his mother and stepfather, Nora and Keith Smith of Paul Smiths, NY, and his father, John Lanigan of Plattsburgh. Other survivors include aunts and uncles Karen (Randy) Larkin, Maureen (Larry) Brown, Chris (Patricia) Lanigan, Kate Calhoun, Lisa (Tony) Italiano, Larry Hennessy, and Margaret Pickett, as well as numerous cousins who treated him like a brother. In addition, Amy’s parents Terry and Danny Rudd of Burlington, NC survive, along with Amy’s sister Sharon (Daryl) Norris and their children of Wilmington, NC.

He was predeceased by his grandparents, Joe and Dorothy Hennessy, and David and Jane Lanigan, all of Plattsburgh, and by two aunts, Susie and Joanna Hennessy.

Even more than his professional success, Sean valued the loving bonds he was able to forge with the people around him. To honor Sean’s memory, let someone know you appreciate them. “A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.” Sean was an organ donor. Please consider registering if you haven’t already.

We hope you will join us for a casual celebration of Sean’s life and a chance to share some favorite memories at the Paul Smith’s College VIC on Monday, September 9 from 3:00-5:00.

In lieu of flowers, you might donate to your local volunteer rescue squad, Saranac Lake School District’s Student Needs Fund, American Heart Association or any organization of your choice.

Fortune-Keough Funeral Home, 20 Church Street, Saranac Lake, NY 12983 is assisting the family with Sean’s arrangements. Family and friends wishing to remember Sean can send a condolence, share a memory and sign the on-line guest book at www.fortunekeoughfuneralhome.com