Obituary of Edward F. Miller

Edward. F. Miller, former POW, dies at 87

Gary McLendon • Staff writer • May 14, 2008

Edward F. Miller, a prisoner of war during WWII and third-generation owner of Miller Funeral Homes, passed away suddenly on Sunday.

He died of heart failure at St. Ann's Home in Irondequoit. He was 87.

Mr. Miller, the grandson of funeral home founder Nicholas Miller, grew up in Rochester and graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas High School in 1938. He attended the University of Notre Dame for two years before transferring to the Cincinnati School of Mortuary Science.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1943.

As a navigator, Mr. Miller, who was stationed in North Africa during the war, flew B-24's in bombing runs over Europe. He was shot down and spent 20 months in a prisoner-of-war camp in Poland.

Mr. Miller took over the family business from his father, Edward A. Miller, in 1945, shortly after returning to Rochester.

Mr. Miller married Margaret Kellett of Rochester in 1946. Together they have six children.

"He was great family man. A very unassuming man. He had a patience of Job," said his son Edward J. Miller of Penfield. "He would do anything to go unnoticed."

Still, his son, said: "The funeral home is one of the largest in the state now. It's due to him."

The business was founded in 1889 at 100 North St. and operated at 706 South Ave. and 1625 Mt. Hope Ave. before moving to its current location on Winton Road South.

It is the oldest continuously operating funeral home in Rochester, family members said. In contrast to the somber nature of his profession, Mr. Miller had a "great sense of humor," said his son. "He never called anybody by their actual name. He would make a name up and that would be their name."

Mr. Miller was a member of St. Anne Church in Rochester and enjoyed a summer home, and sailing, on Conesus Lake.

Daughter Mary McConville said her father, "was just the most honest and fair person you could ever want to know. He was a role model for us. ... No matter what was going on in his life, he put both feet on the floor in the morning and did what he had to do."

Mr. Miller is predeceased by his wife, Margaret. He is survived by his children, Mary, Edward, Mark, Jeanne, Paul, and Peter, and numerous grandchildren, nieces and nephews.

Family and friends are invited to call from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. today at Miller Funeral Homes, Inc., 3325 Winton Road South.

The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Thursday at St. Anne Church, 1600 Mt. Hope Ave.

GMCLENDN@DemocratandChronicle.com