Nicholas M. Griffin's Obituary
Nicholas M. Griffin of Batesville, and formerly of Chicago, died Saturday, May 28, 2011 at Hospice of Cincinnati in Blue Ash. Born June 14, 1933 in Chicago, he is the son of Eilleen (Nee: Dougall) and Richard Griffin. He married Phyllis Nowicki November 12, 1960 in Chicago. Nick was a policy analyst for the American Medical Association of Chicago 42 years before retiring in 1998, receiving the Citation of Distinguished Service from the AMA. After retirement he volunteered at Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington, Illinois and Margaret Mary Hospital in Batesville.Nick enjoyed many interests and his favorite was being on the water. He loved taking the grandkids fishing. A long time fan of water skiing, he was still going strong on his 75th birthday and liked snow skiing as well. If not on the water, time spent outside working in the yard was the next best thing. His family described Nick as having a good sense of humor and very modest, believing that your accomplishment would speak for themselves. They also mentioned he was meticulous and much their dismay, never wrong…………or so he thought. It is rumored he has quite a collection of different hot sauces since a trip to Jungle Jim’s wasn’t complete without stopping by the hot sauce display. It also appears he collected remotes and besides Nick, no one else is really sure how to turn on the T.V. A graduate of Northwestern University, he was huge Wildcats fan and Chicago Bears fan as well, but broke from family tradition and became an Indianapolis Colts convert after they defeated the Bear’s in the 2006 Super Bowl. Nick and Phyllis liked to travel were able to take many trips abroad. Among their favorites were Hawaii, Aruba and Ireland where Nick was able to explore his family heritage. He is survived by his wife Phyllis; daughter and son-in-law Amy and Tom Lorentz of Appleton, Wisconsin; son and daughter-in-law John and Celeste Griffin of Cincinnati; sister Grainne Minzenberger of Lake Bluff, Illinois; brother Anthony Griffin of Laveen, Arizona and grandchildren Matt, Mark and Scott Lorentz and Nick, Jack and Annie Griffin. He is preceded in death by his parents. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, June 1st, at the funeral home. On Friday, June 3rd, a visitation will be held at St. Francis de Sales Church in Lake Zurich, Illinois from 9:30 to 11 a.m., with funeral services following at 11 a.m. officiated by Rev. David Ryan. Burial will follow at All Saints Cemetery in Des Plaines, Illinois. The family requests memorials to the Hansen Center or St. Rita’s School for the Deaf.
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