[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 156 (Friday, September 10, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E960-E961]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE LIFE OF L.D. ``JACK'' GRIFFIN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BRIAN BABIN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 10, 2021

  Mr. BABIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of L.D. 
``Jack'' Griffin, who passed away on Saturday, July 24, 2021, at the 
age of 94.
  On April 11, 1927, Jack was born in Monroe, Louisiana, to Sam and 
Alma Lee Mullican Griffin. He married Myra Collier, and they spent 68 
years together. Jack and Myra were blessed with two children, Ky and 
Leeza.
  Jack patriotically served our country in the United States Navy 
during World War II. He was a longtime resident of Tyler County and 
continued to faithfully serve his community as a member of the First 
Baptist Church of Woodville. Jack was also a part of the Magnolia 
Masonic Lodge No. 495 in Woodville. As a Mason, he attained the 32nd 
Degree, an honor bestowed for his outstanding service. He was also a 
member of the El Mina Shrine in Galveston, Texas.
  Jack traveled the world as a pipeliner. His specialty was in water 
crossings. Jack skillfully engineered and constructed pipelines in 
Straits of Mackinac, the Puget Sound, the Straits of Gibraltar, and 
many places in between. Jack retired as Director of Field Services with 
Williams Companies based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
  Jack is remembered as one who loved his family and looked forward to 
being amused and entertained at their regular gatherings. In the words 
of Henry David Thoreau, he went confidently in the direction of his 
dreams, living a life more than he imagined. Even though he worked all 
over the world, he said of his beloved Woodville, ``It may not have 
been where I intended to go, but I think I ended up where I needed to 
be.''
  Jack is survived by his wife, Myra Griffin of Woodville; son, Ky D. 
Griffin and wife Rhonda of Jasper; daughter, Leeza Blanchette and 
husband Jacques of Woodville; grandchildren, Blake Blanchette and wife 
Helen of Sinton, Megan Parmer and husband Randy of The Woodlands, Brent 
Blanchette of Woodville, Blaire Rogers and husband Dwight of North Palm 
Beach, Florida and Collier Griffin of Chicago, Illinois; great-
grandchildren, Caroline, Libby, and Ellie Blanchette, Emerson Parmer, 
and Sutton, Quint, and Griffin Rogers; sisters-in-law, Carolyn Collier 
of Goldsboro, North Carolina and Judy Sheffield of Houston; nieces, Kim 
Nagypal and husband Bela of Woodville, Tammy Bohannon of Allen, and 
Cristi Connor and husband Paul of Houston. Jack was preceded in death 
by his parents, Sam and Alma Griffin, and his brother-in-law Malcolm 
Collier.
  Madam Speaker, I honor my friend Jack Griffin as one of the last 
members of the Greatest Generation. His faithful service to our country 
and his community will not be forgotten, and my heartfelt prayers 
remain with his family and friends during this difficult time.

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