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Peter Graff, IV

Peter Graff, IV, 89, of Kittanning, PA, died Sunday, July 30, 2017 at Armstrong County Memorial Hospital.

He was born November 23, 1927 in Pittsburgh, PA to Judge J. Frank Graff and Laura (Ellis) Graff.

Mr. Graff graduated from Kittanning High School and Dickinson College, where he was affiliated with the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. He proudly served in the US Navy during World War II and in the naval reserve through 1955. He was a member of American Legion J. Frank Graff Post #122, Pattonville VFW Post #4843 and the Navy League.

Shortly after embarking on a career in insurance with the Grier S. Graff Agency, he graduated from Aetna Casualty and Surety School in Hartford, CT. Over the years, he developed the Peter Graff Agency in the old Kittanning National Bank building on Market Street while acquiring six other independent agencies. He belonged to the Pennsylvania Professional Insurance Agents Association and Independent Insurance Agents of America.

Graff was active in the community throughout his adult life, serving as Exalted Ruler of Kittanning BPOE Elks #203 and later as a trustee and King Lion of the Kittanning Lions Club.

During the 1950s, Peter was chairman of the Armstrong County Young Republican Club and served as a page at the 1952 Republican National Convention in Chicago, where his father was a delegate for the nomination of President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Graff served for a number of years on the Armstrong County Planning Commission, with 21 of those years as chairman. During that period he was also a board member of the Southwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning Commission, serving as the secretary and treasurer from 1974 until 1978.

For 35 years as the vice-chairman of the Allegheny Valley Expressway Committee, he worked tirelessly for its completion from Pittsburgh to Kittanning, attending many hearings in Pittsburgh, Harrisburg and Washington, DC. Through many years of service in these organizations, Peter was most appreciative of the truly warm friendships and knowledgeable people serving alongside him. During this time he was on the Board of Directors of the Armstrong County Chamber of Commerce, and was president from 1975 to 1977.

Graff also served on the Armstrong County Memorial Hospital Board, as chairman of the Kittanning Boro Police Pension Fund, the Kittanning Boro Planning and Zoning Committee, and as chairman of the Kittanning Boro Municipal Authority for many years.

He was a member of Seneca Lodge #805 and various other Masonic bodies, including the Coudersport Consistory and Syria Shrine.

Hunting and fishing were his favorite pastimes and he especially enjoyed fishing in the norther regions of Canada, western Alaska, the oceans and the Gulf of Mexico. Peter was an avid reader of American History and non-fiction.

His grandchildren gave him great pleasure and love. Their sport and academic accomplishments were a great source of pride.

He is survived by his loving wife, Nancy (Walker) Graff, whom he married February 1, 1958; son, John F. Graff and wife, Candace, of Kittanning; grandchildren, Emily Winifred Graff, Ella Frances Graff and Jake Walker Graff, all of Kittanning; and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.

Peter was preceded in death by his parents; step-mother, Sue (Scheeren) Graff; sisters, Laura G. McIlwain and Hope G. Waingrow; and several aunts, uncles and cousins. He was especially close to his cousin Richard Stewart Graff, Esq., whom he was raised with in a joint household during the Great Depression years, and had a special relationship with his cousins Ann Graff Grahm and Grier R. Graff. After their parents' deaths with them still being in college, he and Nancy moved out to the old Graff homestead in Worthington until they graduated and were ready to move on.

Friends will be received from 2-4 and 7-9 PM on Wednesday, August 2, 2017, at the Bauer Funeral Home and Cremation Services, Inc., 515 N. McKean Street, Kittanning, PA.

Additional visitation will be from 10 AM until the time of funeral services at 11 AM on Thursday, August 3, 2017 at St. John's Lutheran Church, 218 N. Jefferson St.., Kittanning, with the Rev. Carl A. Johnson officiating.

Interment will be in Worthington Lutheran Cemetery, Worthington, PA, where military honors will be presented by the American Legion Honor Guard.

Contributions can be made in Peter's name to Orphans of the Storm, PO Box 838, Kittanning, PA 16201 or the Kittanning Public Library, 280 North Jefferson Street, Kittanning, PA 16201

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