Street in Donora named for Griffeys
Ken Griffey Sr. stands next to a sign marking Ken Griffey Sr. & Jr. Drive in Donora with his wife, Valerie Griffey. It was unveiled Sunday.
State Rep. Peter Daley talks with Donora native Ken Griffey Sr. before the street name unveiling.
Between them, Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. have a bevy of honors, including almost 800 home runs during their careers, All-Star titles and Golden Glove Awards, with such baseball teams as the Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners, where they both played during the 1990 and 1991 seasons.
The father and son now have another honor to add to their résumés – a street named after them.
On Sunday, what was previously Galiffa Drive in Donora was rechristened Ken Griffey Sr. & Jr. Drive. Both Griffeys are natives of the Mon Valley borough on the eastern edge of Washington County, and the new name on the street in Donora Industrial Park comes as a result of legislation sponsored by state Sen. Camera Bartolotta.
Ken Griffey Sr. & Jr. Drive “shows our pride and love for wonderful native sons of Donora who exemplify community and pride in their hometown,” she said.
Griffey Sr. was at the ceremony with his wife, Valerie. Griffey Jr., who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame earlier this year, was not present.
State Rep. Peter Daley, the Democrat who is relinquishing his seat in the 49th Legislative District at the end of this term, reminisced about playing on various teams with Griffey Sr. when they were in high school in the 1960s. He remarked “we grow athletes here, but we grow special athletes like Ken Griffey.”
The two Griffeys are not the only marquee athletes who once called Donora home. Stan Musial, a fellow Baseball Hall of Fame inductee and longtime member of the St. Louis Cardinals, was a Donora native, as was Arnold Galiffa, a onetime professional football player.