It is with both sadness and happiness that Barbara Miller, 91, has left us to be with Gene, her husband of 71 years. Barbara Schlereth Miller, born in Falls City, Nebraska on May 25, 1930, passed away in Henrico on March 3, 2022. Her husband, Irvin Eugene Miller, born in Salem, Nebraska on March 4, 1929, passed away in Henrico on October 15, 2021.
After attending a year of college, Gene moved back home and by chance, met Barbara in a local “watering hole” in a small town in Kansas just over the Nebraska state line. When it came time to drive home, she discovered she had a flat tire and he changed it for her. As Barbara would say, after “running around together” for two years, they married on April 16, 1950. They started their family in Falls City and had five children, five grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Gene enjoyed all things mechanical, was a “hands-on” person and was accomplished at fixing most anything that crossed his path. He worked hard to support his family, usually having more than one job at a time and sometimes, as many as three or four. Barbara was extremely resourceful and worked diligently raising their children and making ends meet. She enjoyed decorating their homes, entertaining, playing cards and being with family and friends. Together, they started Miller’s Refrigeration & Repair in Falls City, Nebraska in 1967, doing commercial refrigeration, air conditioning and appliance repair. They later moved to Porterville, California, Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri and finally to Glen Allen, Virginia, where their son, Bill Miller (William Glenn Miller) and his family lived at the time. Due to Gene’s failing health, they had been patients at Parham Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center since May 2019.
Gene was a member of Masonic Lodge #9 of Falls City for over 50 years. He served as Master in 1967. Barbara was active in the Eastern Star. While living in Porterville, they both were active members in the Manzanita Court.
If you knew Gene, you knew he loved his 1948 Indian Motorcycle and eating anything other than “chickin.” If you knew Barbara, you knew she loved eating vanilla ice cream and listening to easy music. If you knew them both, you knew they loved binge watching westerns for hours upon hours over and over and over again!
Per Barbara and Gene’s request, there were no services. Their ashes will be buried together at a later date in Falls City where their story began.
Barbara and Gene lived exceptionally long lives and were blessed with an exceptionally long marriage. Their family and friends wish them happy trails as they ride off into the sunset together.
Published by Richmond Times-Dispatch on Mar. 9, 2022.
