In Memoriam: John Griffin was always at the top of his game

Longtime educator, coach, mentor, and administrator John Griffin left a legacy in Clark County

Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com

He reached the top years ago, with a long career in education. He was a teacher. A coach. An administrator. 

He also became a mentor to teenage boys about to become men. Some might describe them as at-risk youth. John Griffin just saw potential for excellence.

John Griffin reached the top by making a difference in Clark County. And he did that through decades working in public and private schools. He knew that there was so much more to life than earning a superlative grade in a class or winning a state championship in basketball.

Sometimes a C in a math class is a great accomplishment. Sometimes just showing up for the game is a triumph.

He did not need to win it all, not on the scoreboard at least. Because he had already won in the way he lived, the way he worked, the way he honored the young people of our community.

But God, I am so thankful that he got to go out on top in the sports world, too.

John Griffin, a father, a husband, a teacher, a sports coach, and a life coach, died Saturday. 

And while he did so many more meaningful things than helping a basketball team win a state title, I’ll always be grateful that he got to experience such a championship. 

He reached the top of the ladder, literally, cutting down the nets at the Tacoma Dome this past March. An assistant coach with the Camas girls basketball team, he was instrumental in developing the team’s tenacious defense over the last few years. The Papermakers lost in the 2023 state championship game before coming back determined to go all the way in 2024.

John Griffin was going to go with them, too, even though he could not physically go with them every day.

Oh he tried. He was there most days of the 2023-24 season. But by the end of the campaign, he had to take some time off for himself, to recover. You see, the cancer he was battling was a beast. The treatment he was receiving was taking away his energy. 

So he was not at every practice toward the end of the season. He did not make it to every game this past year.

Oh, but he was there. Just ask the players. Even when he was not on the bench, they could hear his wise words in their heads.

He was there.

Always.

But was he going to make it to the Tacoma Dome? I mean, was he going to be there, physically, to experience it with his fellow coaches, with those players who adored him?

No one was quite sure. Not even Scott Thompson, the head coach. The Papermakers hoped Griffin would make it, but they understood if he could not be there.

Then … there he was, walking a bit slower than his norm, but walking into the dome. 

The Papermakers would, indeed, keep their promise. They did go on to win it all.

The extra bonus: It was John Griffin’s first state championship on a coaching staff.

As a head coach at Mountain View, Griff led the Thunder to a second-place finish at state in 1995. He always had successful teams, earning trophies at state several times. But it wasn’t until 29 years later that he was able to climb a ladder to take a piece of the net after the final game of the state tournament.

I met Griff through sports. I was a sports reporter dealing with an athletic director in the early 2000s.

In the summer of 2003, he and I had a heated, public argument. It was halftime of the inaugural Freedom Bowl Classic, an all-star football game featuring the top graduated seniors from Clark County, and John and I were in a verbal spat on the sideline. 

I was right. He was passionate.

Or, if you asked him, he was right, and I was passionate.

I won’t go into too much detail. I was arguing my point from a journalist’s perspective. He was advocating for the players on the field. He was always thinking about the welfare of young people.

We would laugh about that night for years. 

But we also grew an understanding of each other, and that “discussion” was the start of two decades worth of trust. We met in his office several times for off-the-record, state of high school sports discussions. Sportsmanship. Officiating. Transfers. The haves vs. the have-nots. 

We talked about his mentorship program when he was working at Fort Vancouver High School, where he spent years as the athletic director but worked in so many more fields than just athletics. 

“He touched thousands of lives,” said Thompson, noting that not even Griff’s family and closest friends know just how many. 

There are adults in Clark County today who are leading productive, loving lives who made the right decision about something important years ago, likely due to the guidance of John Griffin.

Earlier this past basketball season, Griffin was honored by his team in a pre-game ceremony at Camas High School. Griffin received quite the ovation.

He did not need the recognition, but he had earned it.

Not just in Camas, but in all of Clark County.

Not just for this basketball team, but for all young people he helped along their journeys.

John Griffin will be missed. 

Because he was such a good teacher, such a strong mentor, those who were guided by him will be able to carry on and help the next generation.

John Griffin finished on top, but he had reached the top long before that championship night in Tacoma.

Paul Valencia is a reporter for Clark County Today. He has been covering high school sports in the community for more than 20 years. A celebration of life for John Griffin is in the planning stages.