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Jerry Ward Griffin passed away on November 30, 2023, at Oktibbeha County Hospital.
Jerry was born on July 31, 1951, in Starkville to the late Jack and Nina Griffin. He graduated from Starkville High School before obtaining his bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics from Mississippi State University. In 1980, Jerry married Darla, the love of his life, at MSU’s Chapel of Memories.
Jerry devoted his entire career to the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, where he served as a supervising conservationist for Yalobusha and Lafayette Counties. He was also an accomplished tree farmer and served on the board of the Oktibbeha County Forest Farmers.
He also faithfully served his local community. He coached youth softball and baseball in Columbus and Oxford; served on the Southern Baptist Convention’s disaster relief team; and frequently volunteered with Casserole Kitchen, a Starkville ministry that provides free meals to the needy. He was an active member of First Baptist Church of Starkville, where he served as an usher and helped lead Sunday School. He was an avid supporter of the Mississippi State Bulldogs. And he was a loving and devoted father and “Papa G” to his children and grandchildren.
Jerry was preceded in death by his parents and his sister, Jane Griffin Dacey.
Jerry is survived by his wife of 43 years, Darla Griffin; his sister, Nancy Undieme of Nashville, Tenn.; his children, Steven Griffin of Nashville, Tenn., Jamie (Johnathan) Hall of Raleigh, N.C., and Whitney (Ryan) Henderson of Memphis, Tenn.; and his grandchildren, Kaycee, Kyler, and Josh Hall of Raleigh, N.C., and Natalie Henderson of Memphis, Tenn.
Visitation will be held Monday, December 4, 2023, at 1 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Starkville, with the funeral following at 2:30 p.m. Rev. Clifton Curtis and Dr. Andy Brown will be officiating. Burial will follow at Memorial Garden Park Cemetery.
Memorials may be made to the First Baptist Church of Starkville’s Children Building Fund, 106 E. Lampkin Street, Starkville, MS 39759, or the American Heart Association at https://www.heart.org/en/get-involved/.
