Middlef ieldPOST Volume 8 ~ Issue 19
May 14, 2014
www.middlefieldpost.com
Neighborly News from Middlefield, Parkman, Huntsburg and Surrounding Communities
Memorial Day Events
Inside ...
Middlefield Village Pages 4-5
Local Schools Pages 6, 16
Plain Pages Pages 12-13
Memorial Day Events continued on page 22
T
his Memorial Day, let’s make an effort to remember what this holiday is really about. It’s not just a day to barbecue and take off from school and work, it’s a time to honor and thank the Veterans who have served to keep this country free. It is important that our youth
Home ~ Inside & Out Pages 18-20
Middlefield Balloon Lands in Nova Scotia
By Christina Grand Porter
A
Postal Customer Local / ECRWSS
OR CURRENT RESIDENT
PreSort Std U.S. Postage PAID Middlefield, OH 44062 Permit No. 77
Middlefield Post P.O. Box 626 Middlefield, OH 44062
realize the great sacrifices that were made to give them the wonderful lives they enjoy, and the best way to illustrate this is by taking them to one or more of the Memorial Day events in our community that will pay Continued On Page 22
s a tribute to what would have been his wife, Joyce’s 60th birthday on Feb. 28, Bob Miller Jr. and his family got together and decided they wanted to send her a birthday message in heaven. What better way to do so than with a balloon? When Bob bought the balloon at Giant Eagle, he was told that because it was so cold that day, the balloon would probably deflate. Nonetheless, Bob, his oldest son, daughters, grandchildren and friends assembled at Bob’s house on Georgia Road to complete their task. They attached a laminated card addressed to Joyce at the Pearly Gates in Heaven with the names of all 18 members of the family, Bob’s address and phone number and loving happy birthday in heaven wishes. Bob added the personal message, “I miss you oh so much” and a note
asking anyone who found the balloon to contact him. Joyce passed away July 7, 2013 after a battle with cancer. May 3 would have been the couple’s 40th wedding anniversary. Bob’s daughter, Natalie filmed the release of the balloon, which rose up about 400 feet on that cold but sunny day. Natalie can be heard on the video saying, “Happy birthday, Grandma.” The balloon hovered and then took off straight up. When it became such a small speck that they couldn’t see it anymore, Dale, a family friend from Arizona said, “I think Joyce is pulling it up from heaven.”
The Bob Miller Family of the late Joyce Miller. (back row, l to r) Shanna Miller, Jaimie Miller, Bob Miller Jr., Chris Miller, Tina Starr, Katie Starr, Spencer Starr. (front row, l to r) Emilea Miller, Jasmine Miller, Adeline Miller, Collin Miller, R. J. Miller IV, Natalie Miller Everyone went inside Bob’s house for a birthday party for Joyce complete with cake, ice cream, and the traditional singing of “Happy Birthday.” They waited 19 days and heard nothing about the balloon. Then the phone rang
at Bob’s house and was answered by his son, Bob III. He quickly called to his dad; the call was from a woman named Judy Carruthers in Scotsburn, Nova Scotia in Canada. Her husband Ron had Continued On Page 2