DONATIONS CAN ALSO BE MADE TO FIRST BANK AND TRUST IN LEVELLAND OR VIA ZELLE. SEE TAWANA NORTON FACEBOOK FOR DETAILS

The WHY behind the WHAT

If you are a native of Levelland Texas prior to 1999 then you should be familiar with Mr. L.G. Griffin. He was a pillar in the black community and made a huge impact on many lives during his time here on earth. Mr. Griffin was an educational leader for the African-American community in Levelland. He served as principal at Carver School, during segregation and many years following integration, he was a member of the Levelland ISD Board of Trustees and other civic boards and agencies, and he headed the adult education program for many years. Mr. Griffin supported education through his advocacy of learning, passion for helping others and his belief that all persons have the freedom to think, speak and pursue their dreams. While running for the board of trustees, he described himself as a Dedicated, Responsible, School Supporter and educator in his campaign ad. His platform was “Vote for a Candidate who cares” and if you knew him, you knew all of that to be true. Mr. Griffin died in 1999 leaving a legacy that still impacts our community today.

With this being said, Northside Park was dedicated to him and renamed LG Griffin Park in 1992. The original brick sign stood for many years until it was hit by a drunk driver a few years ago. Unfortunately, the sign has never been replaced. In honor of Mr. Griffin and to keep his legacy alive, a small group of Northside natives have been working with the city of Levelland to have the sign replaced so that its historical name is identifiable to all of our park’s visitors. Materials have been donated and now we need the help of the community to offset the cost of the construction of a sign worthy of the memories and history that our park possesses. Any help you can give will be greatly appreciated. Excess funds will be donated to the LG Griffin Scholarship endowed at South Plains College. Thank you in advance!

The devoted Legacy of L.G. Griffin

L.G. Griffin was brought to Levelland to be the principal of the all-black school that was opening. In essence, he became the first Black educator in Levelland! He was an intelligent and hard-working man. He valued a good education and wanted that for all of his students. He had a humble heart and a humbling characteristic about him. He had the good sense to swallow his pride to go receive used textbooks from L.I.S.D. Central Office downtown when the all-white campuses had received new editions. He endured that humiliation due to knowing the books were needed at his "sub-standard" school to help his students. He knew and had confidence in his teachers to use those, oftentimes filled with racist language, books for the betterment of their students and THEY DID! When Levelland schools were integrated, Black students were expected to be far behind White students, but that did not end up being the case. This Black principal, Louis G. Griffin, and his dedicated teachers used the limited resources available to them, and they worked their hardest with their students to ensure their success. Following his tenure as principal of Carver School, Mr. Griffin contributed quite a bit to the Levelland community, especially the black community. At one point, he had a community garden that he planted and worked (weeded) himself to provide free access for his community. He was an awesome educator and a great man!

~Ruby Jewel Brackens~