Henry Grady Griffin, of Hearne, Texas, died on December 29, 2010, at Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont, Texas due to complications from pneumonia. He is survived by his wife of sixty-three years, Annie Lillian Griffin; his four children, Mike Griffin, Margaret Tobin and her husband Mike, Sister Mary Griffin, and Marc Griffin and his wife Rachel; eight grandchildren, Michael Griffin, Shannon Temples and her husband Aaron, James Brad Garrison, Lacy Griffin, Candice McInnis and her husband Dion, Crystal Griffin, Brooke Hassler, and Blake Woods; and eight great grandchildren, Christina Addison Temples, Brianna and Anthony Boykin, Lillian Ann McInnis, Aspen and Avereigh Holts, Christopher Gage Garsee, and Kenlie Nicole Hassler.
Born in Franklin, Texas on October 24, 1924, he was the devoted son of Maggie Marguerite Griffin. Grady completed grade school and high school in Hearne, Texas and enlisted in the United States Army in 1943, after graduation from high school.
He served with distinction in the South Pacific for three years during World War II and returned to Texas in 1946. In 1947, Grady married the former Annie Lillian Mudd and together they lovingly raised their four children in Hearne. In 1951, he went to work as a Switchman with the Southern Pacific Railroad and remained in this position for thirty-five years, until his retirement in 1986.
During his working career, Grady remained deeply involved in civic affairs; serving as both Civil Defense Director and Fire Marshall for the City of Hearne. He also served for ten years on the Hearne City Council and for twenty-five years as a member of the Hearne Volunteer Fire Department. Despite all of his family, job, and civic responsibilities, Grady still managed to find time for his favorite hobbies. He was an avid gardener and loved to go fishing on the Brazos River outside of Hearne, as well as in West Bay, near the family’s second home in Galveston, Texas.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, January 4, 2011, at St Mary’s Catholic Church, 402 West 1st Street, Hearne, Texas under the direction of Heartfield–Ritter Funeral Home, 110 W. 2nd Street, Hearne with interment to follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery.
There will be a gathering of family and friends to honor his life on Sunday, January 2, 2011, from 4:00 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. at Broussard’s, 490 Cemetery Road, Silsbee, Texas with a Rosary to be recited at 6:30 p.m.
On Monday January 3, 2011, there will be a second gathering of his family and friends at Heartfield–Ritter Funeral Home in Hearne from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. with a prayer vigil starting at 7:00 p.m.
Memorial contributions in Grady’s name can be mailed to Alzheimers Association, P. O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090-6011 or at the Alzheimers link;https://act.alz.org/site/Donation2?idb=1126757676&df_id=1740&1740.donation=form1
