Mildred M Griffith

Mildred Mae Griffith was called home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012. Mildred loved Christ, His Church, Israel, missionaries and prophecy. She loved to read her Bible daily and used her gift of memorizing and quoting scripture to share God's gift of salvation with any and all people she met.
Mildred was born Dec. 12, 1922, the 6th of nine children, to Orin Jacob "O.J." and Beulah Belle "Breazeale" Miller, in Big Cabin, Okla.
She was raised on the Miller Ranch and Dairy farm in northeast Oklahoma. Mildred was a great student and basketball player and after graduating high school, she attended business college in Tulsa, Okla. She went on to marry her childhood best-friend, Pauline's, older brother, Arthur Paul "A.P." Griffith Jr. on Feb. 22, 1941.
The couple, with their family, moved to Farmington in 1957 to be part of Griffith Construction with A.P.'s brothers, Guy and Calvin. In 1976 A.P. and Mildred purchased P and G Rentals and together with God, their children, Paul, Phyllis and Larry, they successfully owned and operated the family business for 23 years.
Mildred, always an entrepreneur, operated a welcome business, an in-home day care and was a dealer of turquoise, and Navajo and Zuni Native American jewelry.
She was also an excellent seamstress, making most of her daughter's clothes.
Her hobbies included travel and exercise. She swam at Lions pool throughout her 70's and walked daily well into her 80's. She was proud of having walked on the Great Wall of China and loved to share stories of her many visits to the Holy Land of Israel, where she walked where Jesus had walked.
Mildred was a member of FBC-Farmington since 1957 and taught youth Sunday School there for 20-plus years.
Mildred had her 90th birthday on 12/12/12. She was preceded in death by five of her siblings, her parents and her husband, A.P. Griffith.
Mildred is survived by brothers: Herbert, Glenn and Archie Miller of northeast Oklahoma; sons, Otin Paul and wife, Jeannie, Larry Neal and wife, Cindy and daughter, Phyllis Ann and husband, Larry Owen, all of the Farmington area; grandchildren, Kristan and husband, Scott Gray, of Shenandoah, Iowa, Sean and wife, Michelle Hill, of Farmington, Celeste and husband, J.D. Cunningham, of Simi Valley, Calif., Chantell Griffith, of Farmington, Crisha and husband, Sean Bowen, of Bloomfield, Brad and wife, Karli Griffith and Lindsey Griffith, of Farmington and great-grandchildren, Ryan, Matt and Haley Gray; Austen and Braden Hill; Colin Cunningham; Mariah and Jordan Chavez; Orion Paul Griffith-Sweeney; Victoria, Katreena and Isaiah Bowen and Reagan Griffith.
A memorial service for Mildred will be 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, at First Baptist Church, 511 W. Arrington in Farmington with the Reverend Keith Berryman and Reverend Joe O'Neal officiating with a private burial to follow at Greenlawn Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Mildred's name, to New Mexico Baptists Children's Home at P.O. Box 629 Portales, New Mexico 88130, or First Baptist Church in Farmington.
Mildred's care is entrusted to Brewer, Lee and Larkin Funeral Home, 103 E. Ute St. in Farmington, 505-325-8688.