Griffin receives Golden Deeds award

story info submitted by the Fort Smith Noon Exchange Club

Fort Smith business Richard Griffin was honored Friday night as the 2010 Recipient of the Golden Deeds Award at Fianna Hills Country Club. Griffin is the 69th recipient of the award, which was first given by the Fort Smith Noon Exchange Club in December of 1942.

The award was presented at the Book of Golden Deeds Award Banquet, hosted by the Fort Smith Noon Exchange Club.

Griffin is the CEO of Griffin Construction Company and a long time resident of Fort Smith. Griffin Construction is a locally based business specializing in the construction of nursing homes in a 12-state area.

Griffin’s community service history spans more than three decades and has positively impacted the lives of literally thousands of citizens in Fort Smith and the surrounding area. His work as chairman of the Fort Smith Housing Authority has provided affordable housing for numerous families facing the dilemma of homelessness and garnered awards at the local, state and federal level, including a Best Practices Award from HUD – recognizing Fort Smith as having one of the top 100 Housing Authorities in the United States.

Griffin is also an historian and preservationist and received top honors and the National Excellence in Construction award for his restoration of historic Adelaide Hall, which is now on the National Register of Historic places.

His contributions to the development of downtown Fort Smith have played a vital role in the resurrection of what was once a rapidly deteriorating center of urban blight. His financial support of the Fort Smith Trolley Museum and assistance in the restoration of Birney Car #224 has helped to bring history back to life, allowing citizens, tourists and visitors to enjoy the thrills of a genuine trolley car ride as they are momentarily transported back to an era that is now long gone.

In December 2009, the Richard Griffin family gave $100,000 to the U.S. Marshals Museum.

Griffin’s work as chairman of such outstanding community service centers of excellence as Fort Smith Pride, the Community Rescue Mission, the Interfaith Community Center and many other worthy causes leaves little doubt as to why he is a past recipient of such prestigious awards as the Social Studies Educator’s Frontier Achievement Award, the Mayor’s Community Block Grant Award for Outstanding Service and the American Heart Association’s Citizen of the Year Award.

The Book of Golden Deeds, managed by the Fort Smith Noon Exchange Club, is presented annually to local residents whose numerous good works in the community have demonstrated the highest degree of excellence in citizenship and compassion.

Recipients receive a plaque honoring their achievement and a unique, personalized pin hand-crafted and donated by John Mays Jewelers.

1942 : Mr. George D. Carney, Sr.
1943 : Miss Margaret F. Baird
1944 : Mr. Ben I. Mayo
1945 : Major Carl Miller
1946 : Mr. Clarence F. Byrns
1947 : Mr. R. Earl Farnsworth
1948 : Mr. Charles F. Wilmans
1949 : Judge Joseph Morrison Hill
1950 : Mr. T. Leland Hunt
1951 : Mr. Louis Cohen
1952 : Mr. Ed Wright
1953 : Mr. Stanley E. Evans
1954 : Dr. D. W. Goldstein
1955 : Mr. Elmer H. Cook
1956 : Dr. Ralph Crigler
1957 : Mr. Morgan Wright
1958 : Mrs. Annie Brown
1959 : Mr. R. K. Rodgers
1960 : Mr. Clarence Higgins
1961 : Mrs. Willie Crane
1962 : Miss Ed Louise Ballman
1963 : Dr. Roger B. Bost
1964 : Dr. Fred G. Roebuck
1965 : Mrs. Anne W. Ayers
1966 : Mr. John R. Thompson
1967 : Miss Ruth Armstrong
1968 : Miss Gladys Krone
1969 : Mrs. Alma L. Gallaher
1970 : Mrs. Marie Stone
1971 : Mr. D. L. Ford
1972 : Mrs. Virginia Fort
1973 : Mrs. Roscoe McKee
1974 : Mrs. Gloria White
1975 : Mr. J. Fred Patton
1976 : Mrs. Dorothy Cheyne
1977 : Mr. Tom Futral
1978 : Mr. Edward T. Schrotz
1979 : Mrs. Claudia Vaughn
1980 : Mrs. Rose Bethell
1981 : Mrs. Marionette Thompson
1982 : Mr. Bob Kuykendall
1983 : Mrs. Rose Weinberger
1984 : Mrs. Janie Glover
1985 : Miss Jimmie Delle Caldwell
1986 : Mrs. Vivian Yoes
1987 : Mr. C. Grady Secrest, Sr.
1988 : Mrs. Sylvia Lassen
1989 : Mr. Robert Miller
1990 : Dr. John A. Bayliss
1991 : Dr. Samuel E. Landrum
1992 : Mrs. Nancy J. M. Orr
1993 : Dr. Theodore Skokos
1994 : Mr. Jon Grimm
1995 : Ms. Floy Looper
1996 : Mrs. Mary Prewitt
1997 : Dr. Art Martin
1998 : Mayor Ray Baker
1999 : Mr. Dan Richardson
2000 : Mr. & Mrs. Clyde Chaney
2001 : Mrs. Sandy Parker
2002 : Mrs. Fran Still
2003 : Mrs. Patricia Shaw
2004 : Mr. Bert Wright
2005 : Mrs. Deborah Avillion
2006 : Mrs. Charolette Tidwell
2007 : Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Caldarera
2008 : Mrs. Maureen Didion
2009: Dr. Layton Jackson