A local World War I hero - the late Hezzie Griffis, namesake of American Legion Post 30 in Edgefield, S.C. - received a special Christmas gift in 2025. Post 30 member J.W. “Pete” Peterson, a resident of Chandler, Ariz., was in town with his wife, Sandy, to visit family and attend Post 30’s annual Christmas party. A retired Air Force pilot, Peterson has a keen interest in military history and contributes regularly on the topic to the Post 30 monthly newsletter, Hezzie Gazette. While researching a short article on Griffis, Peterson came across a photo of his headstone and felt it was due for some attention.

On Dec. 20, Post 30 Commander Winston Boddie and his wife, Diane, arranged a quiet visit to Berea Baptist Church Cemetery, and Post 30 Treasurer Doug Timmerman coordinated a gentle cleaning treatment designed to show improved results over time. Post 30 Adjutant Jane Doolittle provided a small American flag, which Peterson placed at the grave.

Griffis, born in 1894, was the son of Jessie Jackson Griffis and Ann Irola Mayson Griffis, a respected farming family from the Cleora neighborhood along the west-central rim of rural Edgefield County. Following a family tradition of military service, he enlisted in the U.S. Army in September 1917, joining Company E, 118th Infantry, 30th Division. He married Amanda Elizabeth “Lizzy” Griffin of Spartanburg after being introduced by her brother, John Griffin, a fellow soldier. Hezzie Griffis sailed for Europe in May 1918, was wounded in October, and died soon after at 23 in a French hospital. Initially buried in France, his remains were brought home by his family in 1921 and escorted by members of Post 30 to their final resting place at the Berea cemetery.