Friday, April 26, 2024



Rev. Dr. Sidney D.  Fowler 
First Congregational  United Church of Christ 
309 E Street,  NW 
Washington, DC  20001

Reverend Dr. Richard B. Griffis, United Church of Christ (UCC) pastor and 
former  national staff member, died in
Washington, D.C., on Tuesday morning, December  6.  Through his long ministry, Richard served the church through a remarkable variety of settings – as a pastor of local churches, with both the  conference and national settings of the UCC, and through justice and  inter-religious activism. He was 77.  
Richard had standing in the Connecticut Conference  serving as senior 
minister of Immanuel Congregational UCC,
Hartford, for  thirteen years. He also served as an interim minister at Round Hill  Church in Greenwich, at 
Congregational Church of Union, and as Interim  Minister of Stewardship and Mission Interpretation for the Connecticut  Conference. For the Capitol Region Conference of Churches, Richard was  co-director of Breakthrough to the Aging. He also served Plymouth  Congregational Church in
Minneapolis, First Congregational UCC of Minnesota in  Minneapolis, and First Congregational UCC in Grand Marais MN. In 1965, while  serving First Congregational UCC of Minnesota, Richard marched with Martin  Luther King, Jr. at Selma, Alabama. Richard was the founder of the Connecticut Committee for Interreligious Understanding Along with his wife, Anne Hungerford Griffis, they  served with the American Friends Service Committee in Nigeria in assisting  with relief and reconstruction after the Biafra civil war.  From  1972-1977, Richard served on the 
staff of the former UCC Office for Church  Life and Leadership in New York City and as assistant to Robert Moss,  President of the UCC. 
Since 2002, Richard and Anne have been living in  
Washington DC near their sons, Geoffrey and Roger, and their families  including 5 grandchildren.  In DC, Richard was an active member of First Congregational UCC – serving on the Church Council, Social Action and  Awareness Commission, and as a frequent preacher and worship leader.  He  was a Board member of the United Nations Association of the National Capital  Area, member of the Interfaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington, member  of the Steering Committee of the Unity Walk, and trustee of the Endowment Fund  of the American College in 
Madurai, India.
 
A memorial service will  celebrate Richard’s life and faith on Sunday, 
January 15, at
4:00 pm at First  Congregational UCC in Washington, DC. The service will be only the third  worship service in the new downtown building that Richard was instrumental in  supporting its construction.   
In lieu of flowers, the  family kindly suggests donations to the United 
Nations Association, National  Capitol Area (UNA
2000 P Street NW Suite 630, Washington DC 20036) and First  Congregational UCC (309 E Street NW, 
Washington DC,  20001).

No comments:

Post a Comment