WILMINGTON — Parks L. Griffin, 60, passed away peacefully at his home Saturday, Dec. 23, 2017. Parks was born Dec. 3, 1957, in Durham, N.C., the eighth of nine children of the late Dr. William Kimball Griffin and Elizabeth Uzzell Griffin.
He is survived by his wife of 36 years, Sue Sterken Griffin; daughter, Mehegan Burgess, and her husband, Justin, of Wilmington; son, Sutton Griffin, and his wife, Taylor, of Raleigh, N.C.; and many brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews.
Parks was a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. While there, he founded the N.C. Delta Chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon in 1981. He co-founded the insurance agency, Griffin Estep Benefit Group, in 1998. He was a founding member of the Wilmington South Rotary Club, past president of the UNCW Seahawk Club, served on the board of directors of the Cape Fear Museum, and was past chairman of the Wilmington International Air Port Authority.
Parks served as chairman of the United Benefit Advisors Board of Directors in 2012. Parks was very active in North Carolina Republican politics. He was past vice chairman of the New Hanover County Republican Party from 1993 to 1995 and served on Governor Pat McCrory’s Inaugural Committee in 2013. On December 18, 2016, Parks was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by Governor Pat McCrory in a ceremony held at the Governor’s mansion in Raleigh, N.C.
A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m., Friday, Dec. 29, at St. James Episcopal Church with the Rev. Ronald G. Abrams officiating. Following the service, the family will receive friends at the church in the fellowship hall.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in Parks’ memory may be made online or by mail to Lower Cape Fear Hospice in Wilmington, N.C.
Share online condolences with the family at andrewsmortuary.com.
