“According to a recent poll, at least one in two Americans living today have no idea of The Holocaust. They’ve never heard of it, so that’s very regrettable. On the other hand, I can understand, when I talk to kids, why that came about,” Miller told an audience.
Settling in Butler County, where he opened his medical practice and raised a family, Miller continued to educate the public about the Holocaust. He impacted countless lives all over the world with his poignant story.
He was actively involved in the community for over 40 years, including acting in numerous plays for Greater Hamilton Civic Theater, being an active member of Kiwanis and the Lions Club, as well as being a proud member of Beth Israel Synagogue, where he had served several terms as President, according to his obituary in the Journal-News.
Dr. Miller remembered being in Nazi Germany as the Nazi’s came to power, for example. He also shared his family’s story of escape. He and his family arrived in America during the Holocaust. Toward the end of World War II, Miller joined the American Army, and he was sent back to Germany as an interrogator.
Miller had come from German culture, understanding the rise of Nazism from a child’s perspective. He also experienced the 1936 Olympics.
Miller practiced optometry in Hamilton on E Street for more than 40 years until his retirement. He was married to his wife, Jane, for nearly 70 years until her untimely passing in 2020 from complications of the Coronavirus. The Millers raised three sons Fred (Robin), Randy (Barbara) and Ron, and have five grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
Miller was born in Berlin, Germany in 1922. He survived under the Nazi regime until he left Germany alone for Switzerland as a young teen in 1937. After making his way to the United States, he served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1946.
Because of his ability to speak German, he was trained in intelligence at Fort Ritchie in Maryland and then sent back to Germany to serve.
Miller’s story is prominently featured at The Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center’s museum at Union Terminal — the site where many survivors arrived in Cincinnati to rebuild their lives after the war.
For more information about Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center go online to holocaustandhumanity.org.
Miller was preceded in death by his mother (Lotte Schoenemann), father (Alfred Miller), step father (Hans Schoenemann), brother (Bruce Miller), and his wife. His obituary says he was especially proud of his three sons and their wives, Fred (Robin), Randy (Barb), and Ron, his five grandchildren, Lauren Kipfer (Drew), Deborah Raines (Mark), Stephanie Miller, Jeremy Miller (Kaylie), Eric Miller, and his five great grandchildren.
Funeral services were Friday at Weil Funeral Home, Cincinnati. Contributions may be made to the Holocaust and Humanities Center-Al and Jane Miller Education Fund, in Cincinnati; Beth Israel Synagogue, in Hamilton; the Freestore Food Bank, in Cincinnati; or the Fitton Center for Creative Arts in Hamilton.
Writer Ginny McCabe contributed to this report.
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