Luitgard Margrete Griffin
Born 03/02/1933 Died 5/5/2026
One of a kind is what most people stated about Luitgard (Margaret), and that is truly what she was! She was born in Bamberg, Germany, to Johann and Betty Wagner, as the second child. She had an older brother, Hans, and a younger sister, Elfriede.
Luitgard was trained as a seamstress in school and worked making men’s suits, among other things. She met the love of her life, Albert Leroy Griffin, in 1951, and they were married on December 6th, 1952.
They were stationed together in Alaska, Georgia, California, Germany, Idaho, and Washington. Along the way, they grew a family, son Marlin, born in California, and 2 daughters, Susan (Johnson) and Sandra (Blake), both born in Bamberg, Germany. Niece Denise Leonard joined the family in the early 70s.
When Albert retired from the military, they were stationed in Spokane, WA. While Margret was raising the children, she would work upholstering furniture in the garage. Margret and Albert decided in 1964 that they would rent a space for Margret to do upholstery and sell furniture in the 5 Mile shopping center.
The furniture store grew and they expanded to Newport, WA in 1970. Margaret ran the Newport store and Albert the Spokane store. They continued running the stores, and in 1974 they open Al’s Restaurant on Highway 2 near Riverside/Milan, WA.
The restaurant celebrated her German heritage and featured German cuisine and Al’s “Gutentime Band”. With her husband and 3 children, they ran the 3 businesses. When they retired, they sold the businesses. The furniture store in Newport was sold to son, and they closed the Spokane store. The restaurant was sold later.
They sold the family home on Reflection Lake and moved to the city of Deer Park. They became gardeners, golfers, and bowled in 2 different leagues. Margret was an excellent pool player, and they played pool daily.
In 2007, Al and Margret became “Snow Turkeys” and bought a condo in Mesa, AZ. Margret was very active in Mesa, sewing groups, golf, exercise classes, and playing card games 2 times a week.
On June 7th, 2014, Albert passed away. Mom sold her house in Deer Park and moved to Sacheen Lake. She spent her time between Mesa and Newport. Margret’s health was declining, and she sold her house in Mesa and moved to Washington. She has lived with her daughter, Susan, for the last 7 months. Her health declined, and she was on Hospice for a week and passed quietly at home with family at her bedside. She was a great mother and grandmother to 7 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren.
