THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 23, 1996 TAG: 9610230489
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LON WAGNER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 32 lines
Lee A. Gifford, dubbed ``the Dean of Tidewater Homebuilders and Developers,'' died Tuesday.
Gifford, 86, built thousands of homes in South Hampton Roads, after moving to the area in 1951. He owned Haygood Management Inc., the holding company for Haygood Shopping Center, Haygood Hall Apartments, Holly Point Apartments and others.
He saw more than money in the homes and apartments he developed - he never seemed to forget that having a place to live gives people self-esteem. An invocation he often offered at Tidewater Builders Association meetings emphasized this:
``The sound of the hammer . . . and the din of men at labor does not reach this place of gathering, but our minds and our thoughts dwell on the task of providing shelter for our fellow man.''
Gifford was born in Poland in 1910, and moved to Austria when World War I broke out. In 1921, he and his mother moved to New York. His first job after graduating from college was as an accountant for the American Safety Razor Company.
He and his first wife moved to Norfolk in 1951. They bought a farm, and developed Roosevelt Gardens. That launched his career as a developer.
He would later serve as president of Tidewater Homebuilders and Developers and president of the state chapter. Four years ago, he was inducted into the National Home Builders Association's Hall of Fame.
KEYWORDS: DEATH OBITUARY by CNB