Hugh Wyn Griffith
Hugh Wyn Griffith

Obituary of Hugh Alan Wyn Griffith

Hugh Alan Wyn Griffith b.30 April 1925 – d.9 May 2023

Hugh Wyn Griffith was born in Neston, Cheshire, England of British parents. His father, Llewellyn, was a Captain in the 15th Royal Welch Fusiliers during WW1 and fought in the Battle of Mametz Wood on the Somme. Llewellyn and Hugh’s mother, born Winifred Frimston, raised him and his brother, John, who was brought down in a bombing raid over Germany in WWII. Hugh went on to receive the Legion d’Honneur from the French Government in 2012 for his WWII contribution whilst serving in the US Army in France.

Hugh lived in England until August 1940 when he came to the USA under a UK government program to evacuate children to safety before the anticipated German invasion. He lived with his great uncle in Rochester NY during his Junior Year in High School and then in Lyons NY during his Senior Year. He then attended Hobart College, Geneva, NY for one year.

On reaching 18 years old, he was drafted and served between 1943 and 1946 in the US Army with the 63rd Infantry Division in Mississippi, France and Germany and then in Military Government. He became a naturalised US Citizen in 1944.

Having received an Honourable Discharge from Service in 1946, he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford University under the GI Bill of Rights. He had chosen to return to the UK to be with his parents after they had lost his brother, John, in action.

From 1950 to 1994, he worked for various British companies, spending most of his career as Managing Director of Shirley Developments Ltd, a textile instrumentation company in Didsbury, Manchester. He married Simone Mester in 1952 and raised two sons, John and Martin. John died of cancer in 2002. Martin and his wife survive him, living in Wiltshire England.

Having divorced, he returned to live in the USA in 1994 with his fiancé and later wife, Dorothy A. Austin. They moved to Pinellas County and enjoyed a peaceful retirement together. They were active members of the community at St Jerome’s Church. Dorothy passed away on 11 April 2022. They had been a wonderful couple.

Hugh’s cremation remains will be placed at Bay Pines Cemetery, alongside Dorothy’s.

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