FISHERMAN

Continued from page 3 south to fish for longnose gar,” Miller said.

As he was passing an island, he noticed two young people swimming about halfway between the island and a 20-foot rock formation in the mountainside where young people hang out during the summer.

“There were a bunch of young people on the rock (that day), so it was clear the two of them had decided to swim to the island and back, about an eighth-mile apart,” he said. “There were no other boats around, and that was a long way to swim. So I turned my 21-foot pontoon boat around and cruised over to check them out. Sure enough, they were tired, and one was struggling to keep her head above water. No life jackets.

“They were very glad to see me pull up to them. I pulled them aboard and as I dropped them off; the tired one turned and gave me a big hug and some of the kids on the rock face gave me a thumbs up and a wave. I truly believed I saved her life that day,” Miller said. “Those were two very lucky girls.”

Along with boating and fishing from the Great Lakes to both coasts of Florida — he lived in Sarasota for 25 years before he moved to Atlanta — his unique and award-filled bowling career is one of which he is also proud.

He was a professional bowler when the Professional Bowling Association was just getting started and said he was generally regarded among his peers as the most outstanding bowler in North Central Ohio history from 1957 to 1977.

Some of his accolades and achievements include winning 13 North Central Ohio singles championships, including the U.S. Open. Miller also led the area’s top classic league in average 18 times with a 20-year average over 200. He also won five Ohio state titles, 28 total tournament titles and cashed in two of two Professional Bowlers Association events in the early years and 14 of 22 Ohio Tournament Bowlers Association events.

He later bought the bowling center he had been representing and then became vice president of the NCOBowlers Proprietors Association.

Staying active is also a part of this exceptional senior’s routine. Besides fishing three to four times a week, he walks a mile every morning as he has for 39 years.

“Take care of yourself,” he said when asked about his long and active life. “Eat a good diet, be knowledgeable about food, and quit smoking.” When it comes to maintaining strong mental activity, he said “stay interested.”

And amid a life well lived with awards, successes and recognitions, the prize of which this award-winning bowler and fisherman is most proud is his family.

“I have the greatest kids — and grandkids — on the planet. We are all very close,” Miller said of his three children and six grandchildren in Viera, Atlanta and North Carolina.

“They are all great people and I’m very proud of them.” SL