Mark Kerr Miller Jr. | Passages

Mark Miller was born Aug. 18, 1923 to Mark and Elizabeth Miller in Portland, Ore. He grew up in Medford. After a year of college at Oregon State University, he joined the Army Air Corps where he became a bombardier, flying B-17s out of England. He flew 25 missions as a member of the Eighth Air Force. When he returned in 1945, he continued his schooling, graduating from OSU in Engineering.

Mark Miller was born Aug. 18, 1923 to Mark and Elizabeth Miller in Portland, Ore. He grew up in Medford.

After a year of college at Oregon State University, he joined the Army Air Corps where he became a bombardier, flying B-17s out of England. He flew 25 missions as a member of the Eighth Air Force. When he returned in 1945, he continued his schooling, graduating from OSU in Engineering.

In 1948, he joined the Boeing Company, where he had a long and rewarding career. His tenure was briefly interrupted by being recalled into service for the Korean War. Out of Japan, he flew 30 missions in B-29s.

Some of the highlights of his career include base manager at Vandenberg Air Force Base with the Minuteman missile project, chief engineer involving the Boeing-built first stage of the giant Saturn V moon rocket, and deputy program manager for engineering on the Short Range Attack Missile (SRAM) program. He was program manager and co-partner with the Air Force in developing AWACS.

He became vice president of Boeing in 1972 and president of Boeing Aerospace in 1985. He retired after 40 years in 1989.

Mark thrived on adventures. His love of sailing took him across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. He and his family spent many summers sailing the waters of British Columbia. In 1993, after he and his wife returned from an extended sailing trip to Alaska, they switched to a powerboat and took four more memorable trips to Southeast Alaska, joined by many family and friends. He learned SCUBA, taking diving trips around the world, and was snow skiing at Whistler into his 80s. He spent his last years enjoying life on San Juan Island.

He is survived by his wife of 30 years, Judith; son, Mark Miller III (Karen); daughters, Kiersten and Karen Miller; stepsons, Kris (Kim), Erik (Alison), and Jon (Pam) Henderson; grandson, Jeremy Henderson, five Miller grandchildren, and a loving extended family of brothers and sisters-in-law with many nieces and nephews.

Mark embarked on his last adventure on Aug. 20, 2010. He was 87.

— Family of Mark Kerr Miller Jr.