Howell Riffey

Palestine High School

Class of 1961

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Howell Riffey - Class of 1961 - Palestine High School

First Name	Howell
Last Name	Riffey
Graduation Year	Class of 1961
Gender	Male
Hometown	Wheatley, Arkansas
Relationship Status	Married
About Me	FOR MY YOUNG'UNS AND THEIR YOUNG UN'S: EDUCATION 1948-Dec 1954 RESIDENCE: 428 Dewit St. Jackson Ms. Galloway Elem. Jackson Ms. Capt of the patrol boys!!Dec 1954-1958 Residence: 3325 W. Rosita Circle, Whitehaven Tn Graves Road Elem/middle school, Whitehaven Tn which was a South Memphis suburb where Graceland is. Little league baseball 3rd - 6th grade. RESIDENCE 3217 W. Rosita Circle, Whitehaven Tn (now in South Memphis City Limits). '58-60 Whitehaven High, 9th - 11th. Senior league baseball, pitcher and shortstop. Got a Ham Radio License in 10th grade. '61 Residence: Riffey Grocery, Hwy 70, Wheatey Ar High graduate. Basketball and FFA. Started at Wheatley High after the 1st week of Senior Year. 1962: Old Doane (sp?) Hall, Univ of Central Ark 1963: 3 semesters 62/63 at UA , Fayetteville, Chemical Engineering courses. 1964-1966: Arkansas Hall, Phi Lambda Chi floor: Univ of Central Ark: (UCA) BS in Business, Minor Economics. Honored as President of Phil Lambda Chi Social Fraternity and National Man of the year '64/65. Nominated for Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities. Intramural's: Football, softball, & bowling team . Member of the Young Republican club. (Phi Lambs was football Toilet bowl winner in '65 over Sigma Tau Gamma and the exalted symbol of the victory hung on our fraternities' wall for the next year; the coveted Toilet seat with brass plate engraved cover.) My sister Paula was Phi Lamb's queen of her court in the festivities. My roommate for last three years at UCA was the late Dick Halbrook. Frat brother and 4 year starter in football and shot put. UNCG: Graduate work at UNC at Greensboro (Gso) in '76 Duke Univ: Completed a year long, weekend, plus 2 weeks full time program in Hospital Administration in '78 at near by Duke Univ. Durham NC WORK EXPERIENCES. Summer of '61: Hoed (w/ John Deere 740 tractor), and watered my Uncle Darrell's Soy Bean crop. Summer of '62: Help build cousin Rodney Monroe's home on the family farm. Summer of '63: 4 Frat brothers went to Chicago and worked for the summer. I worked at Bethlehem Steel; a lead shear operator for cutting steel rods. Worked 3rd shift, went to day games at the Cubs and White Sox ball parks. Loved Chicago. Summer of '64: Measured Rice, Cotton and Soy Bean acreage's for the government to insure farmers did not over plant the allotments. Summer of '65. Heavy Equipment operator; a pan/scraper, hauling dirt from pits to build I-40 near Wheatley. Summer of '66. While waiting for a slot to open at the Air Force Officers Tng School after graduation, continued operating a scraper and fighting off the draft for six months. Finally got an Air Force Officers Training School (OTS) slot for Jan 2, 1967 at Lackland AFB Texas. March 17, 1967, a brand spanking new 2nd Lt. April- June '67, Undergraduate Navigator Training Mather AFB Calif. '67-71 USAF, 1/Lt. Served at Cape Kennedy Fla supporting the Saturn Launches, Korat RTAFB Thailand supporting F4, F105 missions over Vietnam and the Hoe Chi Mien trail. Warner Robins Ga AFB. Headquarters for 13 rescue helicopter detachments in SE US, Panama and Thule Greenland. Visited each detachment once per year. Squadron Admin Officer in each Squadron. Highest rank Captain. Plus 2 years of active Air Force reserves (Postal and Courier Flight) in Greensboro NC in '71-73 with 10 days training at Keesler AFB Ms. '71-'75 Residence: 2 months at the Kings Inn then 3217 James Place Greensboro NC. Boy Scouts of America: General Green Council. District Exec then Field Director and Career Interest Explorering Director Gso NC Residence: July 1976 - Aug 1989: 1007 Cannes Way, Greensboro NC 27406 '76-'80 L. Richardson Hospital, Gso, Asst Hospital Director for support services. '81-'87 Sales Mgr then Gen Mgr of a small engineering company in Gso. RESIDENCE: Aug 1989-July 2001: 1607 Fox Hollow Rd Greensboro NC 27410. '88-2000: Riffey and Associates employee benefits. Gso 2000 retired from the rat race and have been an on call courier for emergency type trips, for everything from Human Tissue to Jet engines. I am a Owner/Operator as they say in the trucking biz. Since 2009 have hung out on Sat and Sun Mornings at Abbotswood at Irving Park Indelpendent living Ctr in case they have an emergency. April 10 1989, Death by melanoma(skin) cancer of my first wife Annie Ray Owens Riffey of Jackson Ms, a dedicated Educator and a Principal for the previous 12 years at Aycock junior high then a Middle School. She was president of the Principals assoc. Runner up for Principal of the year in NC and first principal in the state's history (to our knowledge) to have children (Jason and Joni) while principal. We had been married over 20 years and our children were 9, 12 & 18 when she died. I later married my wife's good friend Jerry Sumner Riffey who had become a widow a few months before Annie Ray died. She has wonderfully helped me raise the kids since 1989. . She has one son, Richard dob '67 a daughter in law and two grandsons born in '94 and '96. My kids were born in '70 Jonathan, '76 Jason and Joni '80. Jason has two children, a '95 daughter and a '97 son and on May 11, , 2011, twins Faith and Grace were added to the household! Jonathan '70 and Joni '80 have not yet been married. All four of our children live in the Greensboro area. Church and civic activities: Greensboro NC: Scout master and Cub master of a troop at the cerebral palsy school. Den leader at Pleasant Garden Baptist church Weblos den. Was honored to Chair the following: A local Gideon camp. Full Gospel Business Men's fellowship, Christian Business Men's Committee, Nat Greene Sertoma Civic Club. Pleasant Garden Ele School PTA, Greater Greensboro annual Prayer Breakfast , Triad Christian Counseling, 6th Congressional District for '88 Presidential campaign. Also Page High Band booster treasurer with Jerry for 4 years. Active in Best Friends program, Coached and played men's softball in the Air Force and in Greensboro church leagues for 20 seasons in slow, fast, and modified fast pitch. An almost daily jogger from '67 to 2000 when lost incentive when quit softball. Now my ever increasing waist line is the new incentive as well as keeping up with my grand kids so hitting the road again. My main reason for leaving the Air Force was to raise my family in one location; no moving around and that has been successful. Although we have moved in Greensboro 6 times in 40 years here, up sizing and down sizing. 1971-1976 Irving Park United Methodist Church 1976- 1980 Moriah United Methodist Church 1980-1989 Christ Covenant Church 1989 to Present: Mount Pisgah United Methodist Church Been a member of Mount Pisgah program for 4 years then Jerry and I led groups for 6 more years. Player Coach on the church mens slow pitch team for 10 years. Served on several committees Pastor parish, Finance, and Race Relations Chmn since 1995ish (In that time we never had a race riot in the church!!) Have been a rotating teacher in adult sunday school classes each year. I support Jerry weekly as she makes the 130 mile round trip to a men's prison to lead the UMC discipleship program there. From our church the UMC discipleship program has spread to a majority of the prisons in the NC. United Methodist Church (UMC) 21since marrying into Jerry's church years ago. Sang in the choir 5 years, Participated in the UMC discipleship These are the more positive things I can think of. My many failures and those activites not so positive have taken up about 25 typed written pages and are a...(read more)