Mr James Arthur Griffin's Obituary
James Arthur Griffin was born in Hico, TX on August 5, 1923. He died peacefully at his Houston home on January 11, 2013 at the age of 89. In the 1920s and '30s, James grew up on farms and in small towns through eastern and central Texas. During those lean years, his family lived in different locations until eventually settling in the Cloverleaf-North Shore area of east Houston at the outbreak of World War II. During the war, James served in the U.S. Navy for two and 1/2 years. After the war, he became a carpenter by trade, working on various jobs, including the construction of the Washburn Tunnel underneath the Houston Ship Channel. As a carpenter and contractor, he would go on to build numerous homes in the Cloverleaf-North Shore area, including the previous family home on Topeka Street and the current one on Holly Park. For the bulk of his working career; however James was a foreman for the George Kennedy & Son Construction Company, paving hundreds of city and subdivision streets throughout the greater Houston area. Eventually, he would own and operate several construction companies of his own until he retired. Throughout his life James enjoyed the outdoors, was an avid hunter, and loved playing dominoes with family and friends. He was preceded in death by his father and mother, Dewey and Ozelle Griffin, his brother Kenneth Griffin and by his wife of 40 years Pauline Griffin. He is survived by three sisters Frieda Robinson of Hickory, North Carolina, Virginia Hamilton of Caldwell, Texas, and Elsie Adams of Hockley, Texas; a brother Jerald Griffin of Huntsville, Texas; his son Jerry Griffin of Lodi, California and his daughter La Nell Orr of Houston, Texas; grandchildren Jenny Anklam of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Amy Ramos of Channelview, Texas, Jill Siddens of Owosso, Michigan, Aaron Orr of Houston, Texas and John Griffin of Portland, Oregon; seven-great grandchildren Orion, Sean, Kaylee, Emma, Caleb, Emily, and Elizabeth; and by his special friend who was a great comfort to him in his later years, Betty Burkett of Houston, Texas.
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