James Leslie (Les) Griggs

Memorial services for Colonel James Leslie Griggs will be held at 1:00 p.m., Thursday, August 11, 2011 at Fort Myer Memorial Chapel, Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA.


James Leslie Griggs, Colonel, United States Army (Retired), of Carlisle, PA passed away in Philadelphia on Sunday, April 3, surrounded by family.
Colonel Griggs was born on 14 November 1937 in Bennettsville, SC to James Lonnie and Nannie Gilliland Griggs.  He graduated from Bennettsville High School and Wofford College before entering the United States Army as a second lieutenant in November 1959.
Colonel Griggs spent most of his military career as a military intelligence officer and foreign area specialist.  During his active duty service, Colonel Griggs received a Masters degree in Slavic Studies from the University of Kansas, and also graduated from the Armed Forces Staff College and the National War College.  His overseas service included several tours of duty in Europe and two years with US Army units in Vietnam.  Colonel Griggs commanded the 8th Psychological Operations Battalion at Fort Bragg, survived three tours of duty on the Army Staff in the Pentagon, and also served with the Defense Intelligence Agency.  He closed out his active duty service by serving as the Director of Soviet Studies at the US Army War College and, finally, as the United States Defense and Army Attaché in Poland in 1985 and 1986.  Colonel Griggs retired from active duty on 1 September 1986.
Following his military retirement, Colonel Griggs accepted a position as a military analyst in the Central Intelligence Agency’s Directorate of Intelligence.  He served with the CIA in several analytical and management positions until his retirement in August 2000.  His final service with the CIA was as the Director of Central Intelligence Representative to the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.  Following his retirement from the CIA, Colonel Griggs received the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal for his service to the Agency.  Colonel Griggs often recollected that the two highlights of his CIA career were his tenure as chief of the military branch of the Balkans Task Force, which afforded him the opportunity to work with and mentor some of the most talented young military analysts at the CIA; and his work with Colonel Ryszard Kuklinski, a Polish General Staff officer who worked covertly for the Central Intelligence Agency during the Cold War providing Soviet war plans and other vital information that would have helped NATO defeat the Warsaw Pact if war were to have broken out.  Colonel Kuklinski and his wife Joanna became two of Colonel Griggs’s closest friends, and were godparents to his son Fred.
Colonel Griggs received a heart transplant at Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia in February 2006 after another transplant center had given up on him because his medical case was so complex.  Everyone who knew Colonel Griggs is grateful to the medical professionals at Hahnemann whose skill and devotion gave us more time with him.
Colonel Griggs is survived by his wife, Josephine Bonan Griggs, their beloved children Fred and Annie (at home), and his children from his first marriage to the former Sara Frances Cockfield: Jim and his wife Mary (Broad Run, VA), Melynda and her daughter Emily (Fairfax, VA).  Colonel Griggs was preceded in death by Charlotte Anne, his daughter from his first marriage.
The family has requested that donations be made to the Gift of Life Donor Program, 401 North 3rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19123-4101 in lieu of flowers.
A reception and visitation will be held from 1:00-3:00 p.m., Saturday, April 9, 2011 at The Vault of Carlisle, 1 North Hanover Street, Carlisle.  Parking will be available behind The Vault and also at Hoffman-Roth Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc., 219 North Hanover Street, Carlisle.
Memorial services for Colonel James Leslie Griggs will be held at 1:00 p.m., Thursday, August 11, 2011 at Fort Myer Memorial Chapel, Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA.
Hoffman-Roth Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc., 219 North Hanover Street, Carlisle is in charge of the funeral arrangements.