Vera Mae Griffin

Born in Kansas City, KS, June 20,1927. Started correspondence lessons from Art Instruction, Inc., Minneapolis, MN when Vera Mae was about 12 years old. She graduated from Parker Grade School, Northwest Jr. High School and Shawnee Mission High School with special honors, in Kansas City, KS. Through the Art Department at Wheaton College (just west of Chicago), Vera Mae Alleman, received the Magna Cum Laude award when she graduated. She received her MA in Descriptive Linguistics from Indiana University at Bloomington, IND in 1952.

Vera married Howard Griffin in 1953 and had daughters, Jeng, in 1955 and Phebe, in 1960. In 1950 she started her association with Wycliffe Bible Translators until 1959. She continued her “Pioneer” translation work to the Zapoteco Tribe in southern old Mexico, close to the Guatemala boarder, as an independent missionary from 1960 ‘til she retired in 1990. In the fall and spring, in order to support her family and mission work, Vera was a school teacher for 25 years, teaching mostly 2nd grade. She also made evangelistic trips to Argentina, Ecuador and Russia. She has been a church pianist for 23 years and has taught many Sunday school classes. In addition to all her other accomplishments Vera Mae was an incredible artist. Her most recent extensive painting project was making life sized, individual character paintings of the Nativity which is displayed at the Westminster City Hall, Colo., every Christmas season. Vera Mae’s passion for Christ inspired her last art rendering at age 89, of Jesus in the Manger, hanging in the Somerenglen dining hall.

A memorial service will be held at 4:00 pm on Saturday May 27, 2017, at South Holly Baptist Church, 7101 S. Holly Street, Centennial, CO, 80122. There will be a reception after the service to reunite old friends and meet new ones, all coming together through Vera Mae one more time.

Per Vera's request: in lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the South Holly Baptist Church, (memo line “Missions”).