Leroy D. Miller

Leroy D. Miller, 93, of Wamego, Kansas, passed away at Valley Vista Good Samaritan Center on Friday, August 20, 2010. LeRoy was born April 16, 1917 on a farm southwest of Wamego, the first of two sons of Fred and Elizabeth (Brown) Miller. He graduated from Wamego High School in 1935 and briefly attended Kansas State Agricultural College. In 1943 he married Roberta Hutchinson of Wamego, and purchased 80 acres of land and a farmhouse along the Kansas river where he began a truck farming business with his brother. He raised sweet potatoes and watermelons, tending the crops by hand and trucking produce to markets in Kansas City, Omaha and Minneapolis. Later, he planted feed crops including sorghum, corn and alfalfa and raised hogs and cattle. He restored the land after the “flood of the century” in 1951. Today, Miller Feedlot, Inc. produces cattle, corn and soybeans on land in three counties. LeRoy enjoyed the challenge of improving the land he bought. He leveled the terraced ground and was among the first farmers in the area to install irrigation. He could be seen on his tractor working the land well into his 80’s. In 1994, LeRoy and Roberta were named Master Farmer-Homemaker by KSU for their contributions to agriculture. The couple enjoyed travel including trips to Europe and a memorable trip to South America where they visited farms in Brazil. LeRoy was devoted to Wamego and the region, and applied his leadership skills in serving both. He served as Pottawatomie County Commissioner from 1968 to 1989, was a Director of the Kaw Valley State Bank of Wamego for 48 years, from 1959 to 2007, was a member of the United Methodist Church and acted as co-chairman of the building committee. LeRoy participated in the restoration of Wamego’s Columbian Theatre as a member of the board of directors. He was a past president of Pottawatomie County Farm Bureau, and a member of the Kansas Livestock Association. In 1983, he donated land for Wamego’s Senior Center. He was named Wamego’s Citizen of the Year in 1994. One of his last projects at age 92, was organizing efforts to preserve the historic Louis Vieux elm tree on the Oregon Trail northeast of Wamego. He is survived by his wife, Roberta, of Vintage Park in Wamego; daughters, Judy Scammon, Prarie Village, KS, Jan Crocker and husband Jack, Topeka, KS; a son, Jerry Miller and wife Peggy of Wamego; three grandsons, Mark Miller, Wamego, Matt Crocker, Manhattan, and Marshal Miller of Wamego; and five great-grandchildren. He will be dearly missed by family and friends - all those whose lives have been touched by his wisdom, wit and generosity. Private family graveside services will be held in Wamego City Cemetery, Wednesday, August 25. A memorial service and celebration of LeRoy’s life will be held at the Wamego United Methodist Church on Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 2:00 p.m., followed by a reception in the church hall. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to the Wamego Community Health Ministry, or, Wamego United Methodist Church, and may be left in care of the Stewart Funeral Home of Wamego, P.O. Box 48, 66547. www.stewartfuneralhomes.com