January 15, 1934 – October 1, 2025

Ned Leon Miller was born January 15, 1934 in a cabin on Elkhead Creek about seven miles east of Craig, Colorado. In 1937 his parents John and Edith Miller signed up for an economic recovery program and moved to Orland, California. There the Civilian Conservation Corps and thirty local families constructed for each family a 40-acre dairy farm, complete with indoor plumbing, electricity, and telephones!
Ned attended Calumet County School through sixth grade. During these years he became a lifelong Seventh Day Adventist. At the end of World War II most of the thirty families sold their dairies and returned home to the Yampa Valley in northwest Colorado where Ned attended schools in Hayden, Hamilton, and Craig.
During the Korean War Ned joined the Marine Corps and served in the First Marine Division. After completing his enlistment, he lived in Grand Junction, Colorado where he met and married Bette Lou Moore on January 14, 1956. In October that year Bette became a military wife when Ned enlisted in the army and took basics in El Paso, and San Antonio, Texas. He volunteered for the paratroopers in 1957 and served with the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and Fort Bragg, North Carolina. There he joined the 77th Special Forces and served 7 ½ years in Laos, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru and 2 years in Viet Nam.
During his military service Ned also worked as a volunteer fireman with fire departments in Spring Lake, North Carolina; Coppers Cove, Texas; and St. Roberts, Missouri. Ned had the heart of a helper, continuing to carry handy Band-Aids and cough drops in his shirt pockets for the rest of his life.
In November 1972 Ned retired from the army and returned home to Craig, Colorado with Bette and daughters Janice (1958) and Patti (1961). He trucked for a few months with National Trailer Convoy before hiring on as deputy sheriff for Moffat County. He later worked in northwest Colorado coal mining until retirement, both with Brassel and Sims and Trapper Mine where he worked as a heavy equipment operator for about twenty years.
After his “second” retirement in 1995, Ned continued to work a number of years for Black Mountain Glass, United Air Lines at the Yampa Valley Airport, and the Craig Chamber of Commerce where he served as the Sportsman’s Information Specialist. Thanks to years of camping, hunting, fishing, 4-wheeling, and snowmobiling, he had an intimate and useful knowledge of Moffat County.
Ned was active with Search and Rescue for 35 years. He was a charter member of the NOWECOS snowmobile association, serving various leadership roles and earning the nickname “Old Man of the Mountain.” He shared his passion for riding with sons Steven (1974) and Brandon (1976) who completed the family during those years.
Ned enjoyed indoor pursuits as well. He was an avid reader of Western and military genres. He played cards – both solitaire and “Illinois rules” seven-up – and entertained all with illuminating stories from his past. (How did they have ice in August without electricity?) Ned referred to himself as “just a sketcher,” but family cherishes both his portraits and paintings of scenery near Bears Ears in northwest Colorado.
Bette died of a massive stroke in 1995. In May 1997 Ned married Cheryl Ann Burrus. They moved to Canon City, Colorado in 2008 to support her parents. There Ned continued volunteering, slinging scrambled eggs at the VFW, and performing military ceremonies with the Marine Corps League. Exercise and new friends at Elite Fitness and Weight Watchers helped ease the loss of his beloved snowmobile territory, and he did enjoy exploring the new back country. He also learned the basics of playing the dulcimer. Ned was a daily list-maker. With his busy life, he needed that last activity!
Ned’s parents, his first wife Bette, sister Edna, and brothers Johnny and Allen preceded him in death. Survivors include his wife; children Janice Miller, Patti Richardson, Steven Miller (Rachel), and Brandon Miller (Kara); grandchildren Keith Kutnar (Stephanie), Ryan Pfahl (Courtney), Kirsten Richardson, Millers (Christian, Zoe, Zander, and Alastair); and greatgrandchild Sophie Kutnar.
After 91 years of living life to the fullest, Ned passed peacefully on October 1, 2025 with his wife at his side. The family thanks the wonderful staff at the Canon Lodge Care Center. They extended Ned’s family to the end. At his request, no services will be held. In lieu of flowers, please consider echoing Ned’s kind, helpful, and generous heart with a donation to a cause of your choice.