Wayne Miller

Wayne Arthur Miller, 69, of Fergus Falls, died Wednesday, May 22, 2013, at his home, under the care of his family and Lakeland Hospice.

He was born December 21, 1943, in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, the son of Arthur J. and Gladys N. (Udbye) Miller. He was baptized at Bethlehem Lutheran Church on January 23, 1944, along with his cousins, Judy and Bradley, and was later confirmed there. He grew up on the family farm in Fergus Falls Township, attending country school at District #1434. He loved to help his dad on the farm and was active in 4H, showing livestock at the fair.

He attended Fergus Falls High School where he played trombone in the band, graduating in 1962. He went on to study at the Fergus Falls Community College, graduating in 1964, then attended the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, and graduated from Moorhead State College in 1967 with a Bachelor of Arts in Business. He joined the U.S. Army Reserve and was stationed in Fort Lewis, WA until his honorable discharge in September of 1968.

Wayne began a career in St. Paul, Minnesota as a computer software developer for what is now known as U.S. Bank, where he developed the “Uni-Statement”, a product still in use today.

On October 20, 1973, he married Adrianne Tinderholt at St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Austin, Minnesota, and they made their home in the Twin Cities area. In 1986, they moved to Chicago, Illinois where he began working for J.C. Penney developing a home shopping and banking system, a pre-cursor to the internet system used today. He then began working for the New York Port Authority, developing a security access system for employee areas of the three major New York airports.

In 1992, the family moved to Sartell, Minnesota where he worked for Banker Systems, Inc., continuing with software development. During this time, he designed and built his dream home on the Mississippi River, where the family lived until 1998. Following this, he was able to fulfill another dream by pursuing farming. Wayne purchased the farm of his sister and brother-in-law, Joyce and Willis Roehl, and farmed west of Fergus Falls until 2010.

Wayne enjoyed traveling and sports, especially hockey. He was an amateur architect in that he enjoyed sketching house plans, often on a napkin. He followed his children through their activities in music, sports, etc. They enjoyed camping with friends over the years, and most recently enjoyed traveling with their RV, spending winters in Naples, Florida.

He was a member of Bethlehem Lutheran Church where he has served as a congregational president and sang in the choir. He was a member of the Sunrise Rotary Club where he was a “Paul Harris Fellow”, participated in the “MOB” (Men of Bethlehem) prayer group, and was a board member of the Pioneer Retirement Community and the M State foundations. He also assisted with the Otter Tail County Crop Show.

Wayne will be remembered for his sizeable paper usage when researching projects and his ability to make friends with anyone - there were no strangers, just acquaintances he had yet to meet. He had a passion for getting things done in his careers and hobbies. He was always willing to seek advice from others and learn from their experiences.

Preceding him in death were his parents, Art and Gladys.

Survivors include his wife, Adrianne, of Fergus Falls; his children: Jennifer Miller of Lansing, Michigan and Jeffrey Miller of Fergus Falls; two sisters, Joyce (Willis) Roehl of Fergus Falls and Phyllis (Jim) Suhr of Maple Grove, Minnesota; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Visitation: 5-7 p.m. Friday at the funeral home with a 6:30 p.m. prayer service and resumes one hour prior to the service at the church.
Service: 11 a.m. Saturday, May 25, 2013, at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Fergus Falls.
Clergy: Reverend Tom Peterson
Interment: Bethlehem Cemetery in Fergus Falls