Arthur Ernest Griffith, IV

1966 - 2000

"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old - age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn - and at the going down of the sun, and in the morning, we will remember them." Lawrence Binyon, of the young dead British soldiers in the fields of France.

Arthur was born on October 2, 1966 at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta and grew up in the Collier Hills and Buckhead area of Atlanta with his parents and two older sisters, Linda and Claire. He had a close relationship with his parents and his sisters and felt a great kinship his grandfather, Tom Webb, a resident of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, a former FBI agent and with whom he shared his birthday.

Arthur attended Lovett School where he graduated after lettering in football and basketball. He also found time to play Trapper in the school production of MASH. By this time Arthur had grown to 6'5" and well over 200 pounds.

Having considered numerous colleges, he finally decided on his Dad's alma mater - Georgia Tech. He majored in Management and joined Phi Delta Theta fraternity with many of his fraternity brothers remaining his closest friends and business associates. They met annually for reunions, which they called "Big Chill".

After college Arthur settled down in the mountains of western North Carolina and bought a house and some land. He worked with his Dad in their nursery and landscaping business and helped his Mom start her computer graphics business.

In 1994 he moved back to Atlanta and accepted a sales job with Image Works, which produced promotional items for Olympic sponsors. He made many valuable contacts with suppliers and corporations during this period and after the Olympics formed his own company, Ultimate Image Group.

Arthur had many interests, which included Georgia Tech football and basketball, skiing, golf, cooking, shooting and guns, The Rolling Stones, The Allman Brothers, and the The Grateful Dead. He and his friends made annual pheasant hunting trips to South Dakota, fishing trips to Homasassa, Florida, and occasional forays to Las Vegas (Claire's home), where he was said to have had considerable success at the dice tables.

On December 23, 1999, Arthur learned that he had cancer that had spread extensively to his neck and lungs. He waited until December 27 to tell his family so as not to spoil their Christmas. He entered Piedmont Hospital on January 15 and he died on March 13, Claire's birthday.