Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 26, 1995 TAG: 9503270076
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
A community that grieved together six months ago when a town police officer was shot and killed came back together Friday night to honor him and celebrate life.
A basketball game between the Christiansburg Police Department and Christiansburg High School faculty was the mechanism.
Terry L. Griffith was killed with his own service revolver Sept. 18 as he tried to apprehend a shoplifter. During a struggle, Griffith was shot in the head and died hours later.
Griffith, 37, was the first Christiansburg officer to die in the line of duty, and the violence shook the tight-knit community, which responded with donations to funds to support Griffith's family and to help build a youth center in his name. About 1,000 attended his funeral. "Remember Officer Griffith" signs were posted on storefronts. The department retired his badge number.
Fellow officers and townspeople vowed the initial outpouring of support would not wane and searched for ways to remember Griffith, a 17-year veteran of the force.
The department established a Memorial Scholarship Fund, with officers making donations through payroll deductions. Then they thought of a basketball game.
The community donated door prizes, bought tickets they didn't plan to use, and offered more than the $1 admission charge when they came through the door.
Griffith's widow, Diane, was sitting in the bleachers at center court.
"Terry loved young people. He'd just be so proud," she said as she kept a watchful eye on the Griffith's youngest child, John, 81/2 months old. Their daughter, Victoria; Terry's first-born, Ashley; and Diane's son, Robbie, were nearby. Robbie's brother, Adam, had to miss the game to participate in an all-county choir competition.
"I just figure if they lose, that just proves that we need them on the street, not in shorts," Diane Griffith said at halftime as the faculty was leading 29-17. She had to lend her support to the officers, she said, because "the Police Department has supported me in every way that they could."
"I think this is just what makes communities what they are," said faculty member Steve Huppert as he took a breather on the bench.
All proceeds from Friday's game - $1,600 and counting - will go to the scholarship fund. One $1,000 scholarship will be awarded this year to a graduating Christiansburg senior who plans to study criminal justice. Officers hope to increase the amount of the awards as the fund grows.
Memo: ***CORRECTION***