External Photo Attribution at the end of the Post (#1)

You would think that a person who is a graduate of Harvard College, the University of Oxford and Stanford Law School, might tend to be a bit bookish or cerebral in their activities and dealings with others.

Notwithstanding his academic pedigree, Steve Griffith was the polar opposite. Besides his distinction as a litigator with a wide-ranging practice for thirty-seven years at Stoel Rives – one of the Northwest’s most prestigious law firms, he was esteemed for his reputation as a civic leader, friend and family man.

Steve was a very giving person demonstrating throughout his life that he should share his natural gifts with others. He taught school and coached for two years in Liberia as a Peace Corps volunteer and in 2015, he and his wife, Chris started a preschool in Gbarnga – the same town in which he served years earlier.

Steve was known for his athletic and musical talent (piano and vocal – singing with the Portland Opera and in the choir of his Presbyterian church). His interests, as reflected in his wonderful home library, ranged from art history, philosophy, architecture, environmental advocacy and outdoor adventure, to wit: mountain climbing.(Oregon Live)

Although he served several terms on the Portland School Board, he was known primarily as the unpaid and beloved teacher and coach of the Lincoln High School Constitution Team.

You will see from the photos below that he conveyed energy and joy when he taught and his legacy from that endeavor will live on as multiple news stories highlight. (#2 – #4)

“Griffith’s constitutional law class, which had about 36 students, was especially popular with the children of lawyers, and students often gained a deeper understanding of the U.S. Constitution than their parents. His approach emphasized civil discourse, decency, and the power of reasoned argument, and his students frequently volunteered for free citizenship and naturalization classes.

Under his guidance, Lincoln High’s Constitution team achieved significant success. The program has won the national “We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution” competition multiple times, including three national titles in the past decade.”

I first encountered Steve and his perpetual smile as part of a City Club of Portland research committee in about 2010. City Club is known nationally for its volunteer research efforts and before a report is published, it goes through a rigorous protocol and several comprehensive editorial reviews.

Our study was entitled, “Educating Citizens: Improving Civics Education in Portland’s High Schools,” and was motivated by our concern that the government and civics curriculum – not only in Portland – but across the country was neglected and even largely ignored.

We were inspired by the work of US Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. When she retired, she told the National School Boards Association in 2008,“I will make it my primary focus now to work on civics education in America,”….We have some work to do.” (#5)

In 2008, she founded the non-profit iCivics with the mission to “ensure every student receives a high-quality civic education and becomes engaged in – and beyond – the classroom.” Of all her accomplishments, Justice O’Connor considered iCivics to be her most important work and greatest legacy.

We had an outstanding nine-person committee and labored for almost eighteen months before issuing our final report and recommendations in 2012 – with Steve Griffith as our primary writer (while he was concurrently managing a busy law practice and coaching the Lincoln Con Team).

One of our ideas was to collaborate with the Multnomah County Bar Association – which proved to be fruitful.

(Steve at top right in photo below and me at bottom right) (#6)

Pamela Hubbs, the Multnomah Bar Association Office and Foundation Administrator wrote to City Club upon hearing of Steve’s passing:

“I had the good fortune to meet Steve when City Club was developing the Civic Scholars program. Steve and Don Williams were exploring funding opportunities and partnerships to launch the program and arranged to meet with representatives from the Multnomah Bar Foundation.

Steve’s dedication, enthusiasm, and passion for the program and its goals was evident and contagious….(and it) was awarded funding through the Multnomah Bar Foundation’s Civic Education Grants program.”

We hadn’t seen each other in years and I raised a mug and reconnected last year after I sent Steve an e-mail complimenting him for a letter-to-the-editor he wrote. (He apologized for the delay in responding because he’d been on a backpacking trip!).

And I’m deeply thankful that a few months ago I attended a small City Club reception at his home where after reviewing some of the latest reads in his library, we had a great chat while strolling through his beautiful and expansive garden. His sudden death reaffirmed the importance of treasuring each interaction with old friends.

The wonderful video, below was produced in 2023, when he received the Sidwell Friends Distinguished Alumni Award and sums up his inspired life. Sidwell is a Quaker School in Bethesda, Maryland he attended.

Steve was climbing Chimborazo when he reportedly fell during the ascent.

“It’s the highest mountain in Ecuador and the 39th-highest peak in the entire Andes. The summit is the farthest point on Earth’s surface from the Earth’s center due to its location along the planet’s equatorial bulge. Chimborazo’s height from sea level is 6,263 m (20,548 ft).”  (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimborazo

You might ask why an eighty-year-old guy was climbing a mountain in Ecuador. Steve would respond, “Because I can!”  His philosophy is reaffirmed in the above video where he stated:

“I think it’s a beautiful thing to be up on the side of a mountain and look around and say, ‘How did I deserve this?'”

 

My friend and fraternity brother, Craig Hanneman, in 2019 finished climbing the Seven Summits – the highest mountain peak on each of the continents.

In response to my request, he sent me this picture of Steve, Craig and their three climbing companions in 2008 at the summit of Mt. Vinson (16,050 feet) in Antarctica – one of those seven. (#8 – #9)

Left to right – Todd Passey, David Markwell, Steve Griffith., Mark Morford and Craig Hanneman (Photo by Jim Walkley)

We will all miss Steve Griffith, but he would not want us to be maudlin.  He would admonish us to remember that “In the heights of adventure, we find both glory and grief.”  Steve would consider it a glorious remembrance if his friends gathered, raised mugs and reflected on John Locke’s quotes such as:

“With books we stand on the shoulders of giants.“

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

#1. Fordham Institute (https://fordhaminstitute.org/about/fordham-staff/stephen-griffith)

#2. Civics Learning Process Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1269747468143956&set=a.459287845856593).

#3.  Lincoln High School Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1206886881317347&set=pcb.1206887684650600).

#4. Lincoln High School Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=744190267587013&set=pcb.744192527586787).

#5. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandra_Day_O%27Connor#/media/File:Sandra_Day_O’Connor.jpg) This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Federal Government as part of that person’s official duties under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code. Author: Library of Congress  – 29 January 2011.

#6. City Club of Portland Member Bulletin (City Club of Portland).

#7. Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimborazo#/media/File:Chimborazo,_aspecto_norte,_Ecuador._(26354503702).jpg) licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. Author:  Dick Culbert – 28 January 2012.

#8.  Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinson_Massif#/media/File:Mount_Vinson_from_NW_at_Vinson_Plateau_by_Christian_Stangl_(flickr).jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.Author: Christian Stangl – 8 December 2009.

#9. Photo by Jim Walkley – Courtesy of Craig Hanneman.