Vern Riffe
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Vernal G. Riffe Jr. (born in June 1925; died July 31, 1997 in Columbus, Ohio) was an American politician of the Democratic party. Riffe served for many years in the Ohio House of Representatives and was the longest serving speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives in the history of that institution, holding that office for 20 years.
Riffe served as a member of the Ohio House for 36 years, from 1959 to 1995. He became speaker in 1975. Riffe retired in 1995. Mr. Speaker was a champion at raising funds for elections and his departure from the political scene was a blow to the Ohio Democratic Party.
Riffe, a moderate Democrat, was an exceptionally strong Speaker, even bringing Republican members of the House under his sway by threatening to fund the campaigns of their Democratic opponents for re-election.
Riffe, who hailed from the impoverished Appalachian Region of southwestern Ohio fought hard to bring money for development to his corner of the state. Riffe's efforts resulted in the creation of Shawnee State University in Portsmouth, OH, sometimes referred to as "Vern Riffe State U." He also brought funding to southern Ohio for the building of a major highway, Ohio 32, which starts in the countryside near Athens, Ohio, in the east and winds its way westward across southern Ohio, finally ending in rural Clermont County east of Cincinnati.
Riffe has been honored by several state agencies in Ohio. The Vernal Riffe Chair, a professorship in government at Ohio State University is named after him. Ohio State's Department of Biochemistry is housed in the Vernal G. Riffe Building. The Vern Riffe Center for Government & the Arts, located across High Street from the Ohio Statehouse in Downtown Columbus, provides office space for the Governor of Ohio, members of the Ohio House of Representatives and many state agencies. The Vern Riffe Center for the Arts in Portsmouth, Ohio, is located at Shawnee State University.
Riffe was buried at Memorial Burial Park in Wheelersburg, Ohio.
Mr. Riffe's wife continues to reside in Scioto County. Riffe's son, Vernal G. "Skip" Riffe III, is a county commissioner in Scioto County, Ohio. His daughter Cathy E. Skiver is a retired elementary school teacher. Verna Riffe Biemel, Riffe's second daughter currently serves with the American Cancer Society and Mary Beth Hewitt, Riffe's third daughter is a former teacher.