Kim Philo Quentin Giffin was born Aug. 20, 1918 to Philo and Ruth Fox Griffin. He died July 29, 1996 and is buried in Pioneer Cemetery, Kansas University West Campus, Lawrence, KS.
Kim served in the U.S. Navy fro 1942-1946 and was in the Naval Reserve from 1947-1955. He was a coach at Williams High School before entering the Navy and was transferred from Farragut, ID to Bainbridge, MD where he was stationed as athletic director.
His Obituary:
Services for Kim Giffin, 77, Alameda, Calif., will be at 2 p.m. Friday at Warren-McElwain Mortuary with the Rev. Virgil Brady officiating. Private burial will be in Pioneer Cemetery on Kansas University's West Campus.
Mr. Giffin died Monday, July 29, 1996, at an Oakland, Calif., hospital.
He was born Aug. 20, 1918, in Bellaire, Mich., the son of Philo and Ruth Fox Giffin.
He was a professor at KU for 35 years, retiring in 1983.
He had been an assistant professor of speech at the University of South Dakota and then came to KU in 1948 as a professor in the communication studies department.
He introduced the first developmental courses in the history and criticism of public address, served 12 years as debate coach and in 1954, won first place at the National Debate Tournament.
In 1957, he organized the first Heart of America Debate Tournament. He served as first head of Speech Communication Division, directed most of the early doctoral dissertations when KU started its doctoral program, and wrote six textbooks in interpersonal communication, trust and group interaction.
He was the author of numerous articles, gave many professional presentations, was involved in research reports and was a principal investigator in various research project grants. He chaired graduate student committees and was a consultant for numerous activities.
He was a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Association for Humanistic Psychology, the Academy of Management, the International Communication Assn., the International Consulting Foundation, the Organizational Development Institute, the Speech Communication Assn. and the Society for International Education, Training and Research.
KU established an award in honor of Mr. Giffin to be given annually to a graduate student in communication studies excelling in a research project.
Mr. Giffin received a bachelor's degree from John Fletcher College in 1940, a master's degree from the University of Iowa in 1946, and a doctorate from the University of Iowa in 1950.
He served in the Navy from 1942 to 1946. He served in the Naval Reserve from 1947 to 1955.
He retired in Alameda and was a member of the Twin Towers United Methodist Church, where he served as treasurer on the board of trustees.
He married Phyllis M. Maxson on July 24, 1993, in Lawrence. She survives of the home.
Other survivors include two daughters, Sue Carol Schiefelbusch, Chesterton, Ind., and Kitty Nelle Giffin, Woodstock, Ill.; and two grandchildren. A son, Charles William Giffin, preceded him in death.
The family suggests memorials to the Giffin Communication Research Award. Memorials may be sent in care of Warren-McElwain Mortuary, which is handling arrangements.
~ LJWorld.com - August 19, 1996
Source: ancestry.com
