Shelter Island Reporter obituary: Roderick Lynn Griffis
Roderick Lynn Griffis ((SAG/AEA, Guy Griffis) died peacefully at home on Dec. 27, 2024 at the age of 95.
Rod was born on Oct. 10, 1929, to Lawrence William and Ruth (Hayes) Griffis in Tonawanda, N.Y., the youngest of four brothers — Thomas James, Lawrence William Jr. and John Robert. Rod was sent, at the age of 6, to the Stella Niagara Cadet program, a private, Catholic, military, boarding school run by the Sisters of St. Francis, where he became the captain of his troop. Rod graduated from Nichols’s School in Buffalo, N.Y., and in 1952 he graduated from Middlebury College with a BA in Economics.
While at Middlebury, he earned his pilot’s license and was an avid skier. Rod was studying business at Babson University in Wellesley, Mass., when he was called into service at Aberdeen Maryland Army Proving Ground in 1953. He was stationed in France at Trois Fontaines where he rose to corporal in the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps, serving in Intelligence. Rod was honorably discharged and received the National Defense Service Medal, which honored those who served knowing they would likely be sent into combat during the Korean war.
Rod spent time traveling and learned to speak French before returning home to Buffalo and going to New York City to pursue his calling as an actor.
Rod worked as a photographer and studied acting, singing, piano and dance. He met his best friend and acting partner, Georgia Hester, in Charles Conrad’s acting class. The two enjoyed a three-year friendship until one day they drew back from a kiss in a scene in a play, and “everything changed.”
This loving relationship, which became a marriage that lasted 63 years, was also a working partnership. They traveled and acted, working together at various theaters. Together they created The Courtyard Theatre in Buffalo, attracting a community of professional and local actors. They lived above the theater with their three children until the family moved to Montclair, N.J. where Rod commuted to the city for work.
Rod had roles on soap operas and TV commercials. He modeled for print advertisements, and was featured in several movies, including the Sundance feature, “Blessing,” in which he acted with his daughter, Melora. Rod and Georgia taught theater at Morristown Beard High School and commuted into New York City for classes at NYU where they both earned a Master of Arts. Rod’s career extended into later life and he brought various theater projects to life in the community. He was a member of Sag AFTRA and Actor’s Equity.
Courageous and adventurous, Rod and Georgia traveled extensively. They sailed their boat from Lake Erie to Shelter Island, where they relocated in 1994, living on the boat for a month when they arrived. They continued to commute to New York for work. On Shelter Island Rod and Georgia enjoyed day sails around the Island, growing tomatoes in the garden, reading history books, feeding the birds, swimming and entertaining friends al fresco.
Rod was a lay reader and Vestry member at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church where he relished Father Charles McCarron’s sermons. He made friends everywhere he went, including at the FIT Center, where he rarely missed a day of exercise. Rod loved music and could often be found on the dance floor wherever Sara Mundy was singing.
Most of all Rod enjoyed a candle-lit, home-cooked meal and good conversation with Georgia. He was heartbroken to lose Georgia in 2023, but his family rallied around him, and he continued to live a full life of travel, theater, friends, family and church.
Rod will be remembered for his kindness, sense of humor, healthy living and creativity. He leaves behind three children: Ian Christopher Griffis; Melora Griffis; and Kate Griffis Sullivan; daughter-in-law, Susan Griffis; and grandchildren Madeleine, Haley, Brie, Georgia, Eleanor, Claire and Roderick; and great-grandchildren Celestine, Ottilie and Finnegan.
A funeral service and burial will be held on Jan. 18 at St. Mary’s Church, at 11 a.m. (wake at 10-10:30 a.m.) with reception to follow.
