Richard F. Neff, Jr

Richard Neff, a longtime resident of Granville, Ohio died January 5. He was 97. Dick, as he was always called, raised his family on a large property just outside the village where the Rutherford family resides. The Neffs hosted many multi family picnics, horseback rides, ice skating parties and established a large pine forest on the property with the help of friends. Dick and Wilma Neff, his wife of 55 years, were among the founders of the Town and Country Club, Elders in the First Presbyterian Church, and supporters of numerous civic projects. Wilma Homan Neff died in 1993.

Dick was a sales representatives and subsequently a regional manager of Sutherland Paper Company, which after numerous mergers became a subsidiary of Gulf and Western. After retirement from the paper industry, he took over a family business, Architectural Precast, in Columbus, Ohio. He served in the 1st Army Headquarters during World War II.

Dick married Marjorie Fawns Eikenberry in 1994, also a longtime resident of Granville. Their home on Worthington Road was discovered to be the ancestral home of General Charles Griffin, who served directly under Ulysses S. Grant during the Civil War and later was appointed military governor of Texas. The home, where Marjorie still resides, has been designated an Ohio Landmark Site.

Richard Francis Neff was born August 4, 1917 in Kansas City, Missouri. He attended University of Cincinnati where he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. His siblings--Robert, Betty, and Carolyn --were graduates of Denison University. He is survived by his three daughters: Susan Blue and Jane Norton of Durango, Colorado and Martha Kessler of Washington DC, four stepchildren, four grandchildren, and three great grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at a later date.