Dave Griggs - 1963

Bio & Picture from 40th Reunion
Updated Bio for 50th & Pictures

Update for 60th Reunion, September 15, 2023

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

David R. (Dave) Griggs - 2002

What’s happened in my life since the class of 63?  I often wonder where the time has gone!

Most importantly I married a fantastic lady in 1970.   Her name is Nancy.  She is from Clinton, Missouri. I discovered her while she was at Mizzou and as they say, the rest is history!  Nancy is the Director of Courts Services for the Missouri State Courts Administrator’s Office.  We still live on the farm North of Columbia that has been in the family since 1950.

I started a Floor Covering business in 1975.   Today, it’s named Dave Griggs’ Flooring America. The business has grown consistently over the years and today is one of the largest Floor Covering operations in Missouri.  We sell and install residential and commercial floors throughout the Midwest and were recognized as the Small Business of the Year in 1997.

I like to consider myself a Columbia Missouri activist.  My company has done very well here and I believe very strongly that I should give as much back to Columbia as I have been blessed in receiving.  I have served as a Boone County Commissioner, President of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of the Boone County Group Homes Board, and currently serve as the Chairman of R.E.D.I. (Regional economic Development), Chair of the Highway Transportation Committee of the Chamber, on a task force to study and recommend upgrades/changes to Interstate 70 in Missouri, Treasurer of the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre, and Chair of The Missouri Center of the Arts (a group with the goal of restoring the historic Missouri Theatre) and as a member of the Board of the MUPAC.

Columbia Missouri is a fantastic place!  I look forward to seeing everyone at the reunion next year!  Can you believe it’s been 40 YEARS!!  -And I’m only 29 – how can that be!

 

 

Charlie has been after me for about 20 years to write this so I figure it’s about time I actually did so!

First how in the heck can it be 50 years since we graduated from good old HHS!  I struggle with this concept since I just turned 29; again.

Anyway here goes for hopefully a short story of my last 50 years.  Gotta start with the best part and that is meeting my girlfriend Nancy (been married for 43 years Aug 1st) in 1968.  We’ve had a tremendous life together in our working careers and our personal lives.  Nancy worked in Court Administration throughout her career and retired as the Director of Court Services for the State of Missouri a couple of years ago.  Through our business we’ve been able to travel virtually everywhere, bleed black and Gold, and have generally had a ball together.

My business career started in 1969 when I worked for Cook Paint.  If you remember it was on Broadway back then.  I left Cook and started our own paint and flooring business in 1975. That turned out to be e good thing as Cook went out of business about 8 years later after the Cook Grandson bankrupted the company.  Anyway we are now associated with the largest purchaser of wholesale floor coverings in the world, CCA Global Partners  and our company is now named Dave Griggs’ Flooring America.  We sell and install residential and commercial flooring products primarily in the Midwest but have supplied materials in almost every state for commercial projects and sell floor covering installation and maintenance supplies on the web at www.flooringtoolsandmore.com.

I’ve had the privilege to become very active in our community and state.  I was elected to the Boone County Commission in 1988 and served as Northern District Commissioner in 89/90.  I was the first Republican in history to be elected to that local office and am also the last!  I’ve been President of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce, Chamber small business and citizen of the year, serve on the Landmark Bank (1st National Bank) Board of Directors.  Have twice been elected Chairman of REDI or Regional Economic Development and serve on the Missouri Leadership Council for the National Federation of Independent Businesses and as chairman of the Boone County Fire Protection District, the third largest fire department in Missouri.  I serve on the board of directors of Flooring America and also on the FA Advisory Council representing members around the U.S. and Canada I’ve served on several city and county task forces and was awarded the Howard Lang City of Columbia Outstanding Volunteer Award in 2011.  Another passion is the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theater.  It’s truly amazing to see the faces of New York or L.A. actors who come out to the middle of nowhere in Missouri to perform on stage in a town with a population of 67!  Over 25,000 people attend the Lyceum annually and I’ve served on the board for about 20 years.

Nancy and I were selected as the Outstanding Alumni of the College of Human and Environmental Sciences in 2010.  We’re members of the Mizzou Jefferson Club and Kadlec Society.

Many of you might recall the parties in the wheat field that were on the corner of our farm.  Well Nancy and I still live on the “home place” north of Columbia.  I’ve been there since 1949!  We lost our home to a fire in 2003 and after searching the market for a new home decided to build on the same spot.  I’m still that FFA farm boy but am currently growing an experimental Biomass product called Micannthis Gigantius which is a grass that produces more BTU per ton than the coal currently used in our power plants.

We are avid weekenders at the Lake of the Ozarks and have been for over 30 years.  We love to travel, boat, take and share photographs, putt around in our pontoon boat, entertain, fix great meals and visit with our friends and family.

It will be great to see everyone at the Reunion!

 

 

An Update on Dave & Nancy Griggs

I can’t seem to get my arms around the fact it’s been another 10 years since our last 63 Kewpie Reunion! Reality is time marches on and is just flying by!

So, I guess the biggest news to report is I sold my business, Dave Griggs’ Flooring America in 2017 after only 48 years of ownership and a bit over 55 years in the flooring and coatings business.  It was a truly amazing ride and believe this or not, I stopped by the store today to check on a major remodel of the showroom.  So obviously, even though officially “retired” they still let the old guy hang around whenever.

Our next big news is “we sold the farm” in late 2019, downsized considerably and moved to a home in the village at Lenoir Woods Retirement Community in southeast Columbia.  I must admit this was an adjustment for this country boy, but the move has proven to be great for us. There’s lots of amazing activities and great folks here.

Nancy and I are truly blessed to be in good health and have been traveling a lot.  We’ve been to some amazing places over the years and met some amazing folks. Some highlight trips are to Japan, South America, and France.  We have four trips booked for late 23 and 24 and are excited to head wherever.

Last year we completed an addition to our Lake “cabin”. We are truly Lake of the Ozarks people and love to share our hideaway with friends, family, and extended family.

Nancy is very involved with what’s happening in COU. She volunteers with the Symphony Society’s Holiday Home Tour, the ACA Business Club (a business/social organization), MU Extension’s OSHER Lifelong Learning program and still works full time keeping me in line; just to mention a few things that keep her busy.

Because we moved into Columbia, I had to resign my position on the Board of the Boone County Fire Protection District.  I’m still honored to do some “political” advising for BCFPD and Missouri Task Force One. I continue to work with The University of Missouri Flagship Council and currently serve at the PAC Chair for the Council.

2022 was my year for awards.  I was shocked and honored to receive the University of Missouri Alumni Association Geyer Award for public service to Higher Education in February of 2022 and humbled by the Columbia Chamber of Commerce Legacy Award at the Chambe annual meeting last fall.

In summary, it’s been an amazing ride from HHS in 63 to today!  It seems like yesterday in so many ways and such a long time since we’ve seen each other!  Sadly, we’ve lost some great 63 Kewpies friends since our last reunion. We’ll miss them when we’re together. Hope to see you in October!

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