Bill Griffith, Jr:
CLASS OF 1956
Dingle Elementary SchoolClass of 1956
Woodland, CA
Woodland High SchoolClass of 1960
Woodland, CA
Bill's Story
Woodland High Classmates - '60
Daily at approximately 5:07 AM Felipe, the cat our daughter left us three years ago when she moved to Portland, surfaces in our townehome bedroom and makes a very adamant demand that one of us get up and tend to his feeding. Our twenty-seven year old daughter was married on Mother's Day weekend 2009, and I suspect tht cat is now "our" cat.
Such is the beginning of our day in Eugene, OR where we have lived as members of the grey-haired society since 1998; where we met as young co-eds in 1962 at one of Bill's secret fraternity events (they were on probation). Little did we know in 1962, but we were beginning to stitch the quilt of our life journey, patch by patch and, of course, we had no idea as to how many patches, or the composition of each - still don't.
Bill graduated in June 1964 and enlisted in Naval Officer Candidate School; Shirl shipped over to Germany for her Junior Year Abroad. Bill made two trips to Viet Nam as Engineer Officer on an LST; Shirl completed college and an additional year for teacher certification and then wrote bachelor Bill her "what's up bucco" letter. They were married April, 1967, and moved to Coronado where Shirl got a job teaching middle school German and English.
After the Navy Bill enrolled at San Diego State to study for the CPA exam - he had graduated in Econ from Oregon and needed some accounting classes. Shirl taught in Coronado and since the Coronado Bridge...Expand for more
was not yet open they were happy ferryboat folks. Bill passed the May 1969 CPA exam; in June 1969 he accepted a position with Price Waterhouse in San Francisco and was with them four years - two in San Francisco and two in Sacramento. Following Price Waterhouse he joined a local Sacramento CPA firm.
Sacramento is where Justin, their son now thirty-seven, was born and where they stayed for another six years after his birth before moving to Pendleton, OR, to become Main Street merchants - owners of an office supply & book store. In Pendleton Bill held many positions from Main Street Merchant to Bank Manager to Commercial Loan Officer to Community College Instructor to Economic Development Officer and served on a variety of city commissions and non-profit boards.
Caitlin joined us in Pendleton, ten years following Justin's birth. In 1998 Shirley, Caitlin and I moved to Eugene where I had taken a job in Economic Development. Subsequently, I accepted a positiion as Director of Internal Audit for a credit union and held that position until retirement in March, 2009. I now occupy my time by volunteering on a couple of boards, writing a memoir, doing genealogy research, reading, traveling with our 19' travel trailer, attending Lady Duck BB games, walking, and taking in a variety of theatre events.
Sometimes we wonder if the cat might sleep in, but not a chance. You can't get away from it.
Thankful to be with you
Bill Griffith, Jr.
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