LONG BEACH PRESS-TELEGRAM, FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 1943

 

Miel Griff_im, Jaysee
Coach, in Marines —

Seven Athletic: —
Coaches
Now in Service

Mel Griffin, coach of Long
Beach Junior College basketball
who received statewide recogni-
tion for his ‘cage combinations
through 1940 and 1942, yesterday
became the seventh member of
the city’s coaching staffs to join
the armed services of the United
States when he was sworn in to
the Marine Corps Reserves as a
first lieutenant, aviation volun-
teer specialist. Griffin took his
oath Wednesday in Los Angeles.

‘It had been known for some
‘time that Griffin had applied for
a commission in the Marine Re-
serve and the announcement of
his plans was held up pending
his appointment.

‘SIX OTHERS

The popular Long Beach jaysee
coach follows six other local
coaches into the service—Lieu-
tenant Orian M. Landreth, for-
mer dean of men at jaysee and
football coach at Poly High, in
the Navy; Charles Church, bas-
ketball coach at Poly, now a cap-
tain in the Marines and Walter
W. Bell. also of Poly, now a cap-
tain in the Army; Lieutenant Jess
Hill, formerly at the Jaysee, now
with the Navy preflight school
at Del Monte; Lieutenant Vincent
Reel of Wilson High, with ~
training school in Idaho, an
Mike Dimas, St. Anthony’s foot-
ball coach, now in the Army at
Florida.

Griffin will leave in a short
while for a special officers’ train-
ing course at San Diego or Quan-
tico, Va., after which he will
be assigned to active duty with
the Fleet Marine Force in the
Eleventh Naval District, probably
at San Diego.

Griffin has been connected with
the local school system: for 13
years. Graduating from the Uni-
versity of Kansas in 1924, Mel
coached for awhile in the mid-
west before coming to Long
Beach.

SEVEN WINNERS

As basketball coach at jaysee,
he produced four championship
teams in that sport. and three
baseball championships. As Vike
football coach in 1935, his team
finished second in the Metro-
politan Conference.

Griffin’s 1942 basketball team
was the best ne, ever had at

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