Friends and family gathered at the Myers-Durboraw Funeral Home June 30 to say goodbye George Henry Miller.  He died at his home June 24, 2010.  He was 89.

Miller wore many hats over the years and was known by many as a tireless supporter of the community. 

He was, in recent years, a fixture at the Westminster Senior Center, where he enjoyed participating in the activities and coordinated many Memorial Day programs.

In a 2005 recognition about Miller as “2005 Outstanding Senior Volunteer,” then-Westminster Senior Center manager Paul Garver noted that Miller had been a volunteer at the center since 1997 and served as president of the Westminster site for two years.

Garver praised Miller as “a caring volunteer… chairman of the Sunshine Committee,” who visited “senior center participants who are recovering in the hospital and attends funeral services for those who pass away.”

“George is often referred to as 'Mr. Patriot' around the center. He … planned our first Patriot's Day Program on Sept. 11, 2002 …”

It was “through the hard work and dedication of” of Miller that the Westminster Senior Center had a flagpole, observed another old senior center memo shared by the family at the funeral home.

“Through his determination, the pole was finally completed on Sept. 10, 2001 …”  Miller got the American Legion Post 31 to donate the American flag and Carroll County State's Attorney Jerry Barnes to donate the Maryland flag.

Kenny Williams remembered Miller as a member of St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Carroll County Coin Club.  Williams appreciated Miller's service during World War II and how he supported veterans.

Miller was a life member and held various positions at VFW Post 467, where he joined May 25, 1948.  He was also a member of American Legion Post 31, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Aerie 4378, and the Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 1381.

Miller was a U.S. Army Veteran of World War II. He served in the 84th Infantry Division, 326th Field Artillery and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

Miller was born on the farm March 21, 1921 in Millers Station. He was the son of the late H. Walter and Ella Florence Lippy Miller. 

He is survived by his wife, Agnes Stephan Miller, whom he married March 8, 1947.

Miller left “Manchester High School after the 11th grade” to join the army” according to information provided by the family.

“After his enlistment date of Dec. 8, 1939, George was stationed at Fort Hoyle, Maryland.”  After transferring to Camp Gordon, Ga., then Camp Howze, Texas, and Fort Dix, N.J., he set sail for England and arrived there on Oct. 1, 1944.

“George served in the Ardennes and saw action at the Battle of the Bulge.  His last commander in Europe was the legendary General Patton. George returned to the United States at the end of the war and was honorably discharged from the Army on October 31, 1945 at Camp Meade,” according to the family.

According to an old newspaper article by Lois Szymanski, shared by Miller's family, Miller “enlisted in the Army in 1939 and worked with horse-drawn artillery until 1940. The article said Miller was one of “Four speakers (that) brought the past to life for seventh-graders at East Middle School … in a program designed to let students know about history from those who have lived it.”

Of his service in World War II in the Battle of the Bulge, Miller was quoted, “The snow was 4 feet deep, and the temperatures were way below freezing.  Once things thawed out, we had to fight our way through the thick mud.”

On June 30, members of the VFW Post 467 performed the VFW Memorial Chapel Service, in which leadership remembered Miller's service. Thomas Williams, current commander of the Westminster VFW mourned the loss of yet another veteran of World War II.

“He was a hero,” said Williams.  “As a younger member of the post, I always looked-up to George.”

After the ceremony, Williams and retired Lt. Col. Ron Hollingsworth, the current VFW officer of the day room, described Miller as a, “one tough old bird,” for his service during World War II.

VFW Chaplain Earl Seipp said, “I was bred and raised in Westminster. I've known George and (his wife) Agnes all my life. … Some men grope the high road and some men grope the low road and in between on the misty flats, the rest drift to and fro.”  Miller took the high road, said Williams, adding, “Cream always rises to the top. I think George fits both of these sayings.”

Hollingsworth, a veteran of two tours in Vietnam in 1966 and 1969, recalled “the first time I went to Miller's house. His garage was meticulously organized and cleaner than most houses. It was full of military mementoes. … Military hats, banners, decorations. … It was like a military museum.

“He was a fountain of information. A very bright man. I will definitely miss him,” said Hollingsworth. 

After the war, Miller returned home and worked in the vending business and later transitioned to security and detective work. For a brief period, perhaps in the 1950s, Miller operated a gas station at the corner of Main and Bond streets out of a little building that in recent years has served as an eatery. 

In the late 1950s and early 1960s he coached Little League baseball.

Another yellowed newspaper clipping, this one dated, “1970,” served notice that “George Henry Miller, a 49-year-old vending machine company employee and part-time security guard, filed last week as a Democratic candidate for county sheriff.

“Miller, a veteran … and former official of various veterans' groups, called for 'better relations with other elected officials' as he entered the race against incumbent Sheriff H. LeRoy Campbell, a Republican.

“Declining to take issue with Campbell's performance during the primary campaign, Miller said he favored 'positive communications with deputies and other law enforcement officers throughout the county.'

Another yellowed article with a date of simply “August 17,” was written by now-Carroll County Commissioner Dean Minnich. 

“Security Man Is Straight Shooter,” begins with, “You know who George Henry Miller is by what he says and by what he does. He is one of that country-bred-and-reared … men that doesn't play around with double meanings and fancy manners. Some things are right and some things are wrong…”

The article details that Miller “runs the local office of the Bay State Detective Agency, a security firm which employs about 30 guards and keeps watch over local business and industrial properties for 700 hours a week.”

Minnich wrote of Miller's participation in the Battle of the Bulge: he “remembers being the third man in line to leave a ditch. The first two were shot down, but he survived.”

“He visits the sick, attends the funerals … and sends cards and baskets to the grieving.  There is a sense of community and a system for doing the right thing.  He is a man who believes in setting standards and then working to meet them.  And those who don't meet the standards can expect to suffer the natural consequences.”

Minnich also detailed that Miller “was instrumental in the construction of a second (baseball) diamond on Gist Road in Westminster.” The article quoted Miller, “I went to the commissioners and I said, 'Look, we need another ball field to help keep those kids off the streets.' ”

In addition to being known as a hardworking, honorable, honest man, his son Dale also remembered his father as “a true patriot.”

“Every parent passes on to their children a special gift. My father gave us the gift of patriotism and love of country. … He truly was a member of 'The Greatest Generation.'”

Surviving, in addition to his wife, are son Dale H. Miller; granddaughter Chelsea E. Miller; siblings Lois Neumann, Charles Ivan Miller, Herbert Eugene Miller, Helen Dickens and Evelyn Nott; and many nieces and nephews.

Miller was preceded in death by son Sidney Dwight Miller and siblings Louella Sanders, Ruthetta Redding, Pauline Roth, Ethel Detter, and H. Walter Miller Jr.

His memorial service was held at 11 a.m. July 1 at the Myers-Durboraw Funeral Home, 91 Willis St., Westminster.  At his request his body was donated to the Maryland State Anatomy Board.

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