Photo of Richard Griffin taken by Paul Curran on Hopedale Pond in 1949. |
I have many memories and could go on and on, but I would like you to hear this one. I played basketball, one on one and horse on the outdoor court in the park with an older boy. He was in college and home for a short time before going in the military. He was a very physical but kind guy and he showed me some things about the game. I was amazed that he would let me, a skinny teen even touch the ball. We did this two or three times and I never saw him again. His name was Richard Griffin USMC and he was killed in action in Korea. Ray Midgley HHS 52 |
Hopedale History September 15, 2019 No. 374 Griffin Apartments Dedicated Hopedale in August
September 9 explaining how eminent domain works.) Recent deaths
the manufacture of new firearms with certain features for a period of 10 years. A Boeing 737 with 132 people on board, crashes on approach to Pittsburgh International Airport killing all on board. The 1994 World Series is officially cancelled due to the ongoing work stoppage. It is the first time a World Series will not be played since 1904. American troops stage a bloodless invasion of Haiti to restore the legitimate elected leader, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, to power.
begins to once again deploy troops near its border with Kuwait. In response, the U.S. begins to deploy troops to Kuwait. Fifty years ago - September 1969 - The first automatic teller machine in the United States is installed in Rockville Centre, New York. Lieutenant William Calley is charged with six counts of premeditated murder for the 1968 My Lai Massacre deaths of 109 Vietnamese civilians in My Lai, Vietnam.
September 14 – Persons who were born during the years from 1944 to 1951, and who celebrate their birthdays on this day, mark the occasion without being aware that September 14 will be the first date selected in the new U.S. draft lottery on December 1. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (directed by George Roy Hill and starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford) opens to limited release in the United States The Chicago Eight trial begins in Chicago, Illinois. The Beatles release their Abbey Road album which is an enormous commercial success and, although receiving mixed reviews at the time, comes to be viewed by many as the group's best. The Brady Bunch is broadcast for the first time on ABC.
Apartments Named in Honor of Griffin HOPEDALE - Oct. 26 (1964) - Approximately 350 persons attended the dedication of the Richard. J. Griffin Apartments for the Elderly on Hopedale Street yesterday. Mrs. Gertrude Griffin, mother of Griffin, the only Hopedale man to give his life in the Korean conflict , was a special guest at the ceremony. Chairman M. Russell Dennett of the Housing Authority presided. He related the story of the progress of the 40-unit project, which was approved in March of 1961. Atty. Francis J. Larkin of the Authority was the main speaker. Paying tribute to Griffin, Atty. Larkin said: "Those who knew, as a boy and a young man, Richard. J. Griffin, the only Hopedale serviceman to give his life in the Korean War, can only applaud the decision of the Hopedale Housing Authority to name the housing for the elderly project in his honor. "Whoever coined the ancient proverb that "the good die young" had such as Dick Griffin in mind. Dick had all the gentler qualities -- loyalty, modesty, courtesy, and a sense of the appropriate -- to a degree unusual in a person so young, and an unselfishness unique in a person of any age. But in Dick Griffin, these gifts of gentleness were conjoined in rarer measure with sterner qualities, perhaps unnoticed by those who knew only his quiet voice, his shy boyish manner, his finely sculpted face. With time, one perceived deep reserves of strong will and a maturity far beyond his years. He was truly one of those whom William James called 'the once born.' "Ever since his student days he was a leader of men, exercising a moral authority over his contemporaries which they rejoiced to recognize. On the playing field he compiled one of the most conspicuously brilliant records in the annals of high school athletics. "No one saw more clearly than he the moral issue of the Korean conflict. He felt the cause of the war so strongly that he left college to serve in the Marine Corps to dedicate his powers in promoting the sway of international law against the threat of brute force and arbitrary power. Ultimately, at the Pusan Reservoir, he gave his life in this cause. "It can hardly be denied that the premature cutting of the thread of a youthful, gifted life has its special poignancy. In Dick's case the ruthlessness of fate is mitigated by the fact that his life was expended in responding to the high call of duty in the cause of freedom. "Nonetheless, the dead should not cease to be in the minds of men. Hopefully, therefore, the Richard J. Griffin Apartments, dedicated this day to providing for the aged, a tender, full and rich life, will also served to perpetuate the memory and rich heritage of a gallant youth whose life, though incomplete, was not unfulfilled and who in diverse ways give abundant proof of the grace and gallantry of the human spirit." The invocation was given by Rev. John Simpson of the Union Evangelical Church and the benediction by Rev. Thomas J. Connellan of the Sacred Heart Church. Refreshments were served by Mrs. Frances Spear, school cafeteria manager. The flag raising ceremony was conducted by the Girl Scouts and V.F.W. and Legion color guards, with the high school band playing the national anthem. Milford Daily News clipping from a scrapbook kept by John Butcher. Richard Griffin The Griffin-Dennett Apartments Ezine Menu HOME . |
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