Kenneth Leray Miller

Kenneth Leray Miller

Kenneth Leray Miller, 77, passed away on June 6, 2017, at his home in Fort worth, Texas after a short illness. A private service will be held in Fort Worth, Texas followed by a memorial service and cremation interment at the Grandview Cemetery in Bonners Ferry, Idaho at a later date.

Ken was born in Draper, Utah on August 4, 1939 as the 9th child of 17 children of Charles and Ruth Miller. Some years later he moved with his growing family to the Bonners Ferry, Idaho area and attended schools in Boundary County, graduating from the Bonners Ferry High School with the Class of 1957.

After high school graduation Ken attended college at North Idaho Community College in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, later he joined the air Force where he attended college at Washington State in Pullman, Wash., seeking an engineering degree. In his quest to further his military career Ken was offered and accepted officer training at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Ken’s exemplary military career took him on many adventures around the world. He played an important role in the Apollo space program, starting with the Apollo 8 launch as well as the lunar launch of Apollo 14 in 1971. Not long after, he saw action in the Vietnam War as an intelligence recon officer where he was awarded the Bronze Star. Ken retired at the rank of Major after 20 years of military service. After his military stint, Ken joined the General Dynamics program in Fort Worth, Texas, becoming the Director for the Maintenance and training of the F-16 jet fighter airplane. As Ken said, (“The greatest fighter jet ever produced”). After 19 years with general Dynamics (now Lockheed Martin) Ken’s love of reading and travel prompted him to embark on a third career…he set up his own publishing company and authored five books. “Evening of the Pale Sunshine” and “Weep Without Tears” are books of fiction based on fact about his time in Viet Nam; “Return to the Bosque” and “Beyond The abyss” are fictions set in the Waco, Texas area in the late 1800’s. In his last book, “Tales of a Sojourner, A Memoir”, Ken, an internationally acclaimed author of historical novels and short stories, relates the story of his life against the background of events that altered and illuminated our times from the 1930’s to the present day. A former U.S. Air Force Officer and Aerospace manufacturing executive, he has been in all 50 states, 45 countries and has lived in four overseas areas. At the time of his death all five of his books could be found at Amazon.com.

Ken is preceded in death by his parents, Charles and Ruth Miller; sisters Penny Robinson and Lavina Miller; Brothers Charles, Leonard, Bob, Floyd, Paul, John and Clifford.

Ken is survived by his wife Candy of Fort Worth; sons, Alan (Donna) of Moorehead City, North Carolina, Mike (Jennifer) of Cypress, Texas and Brian (Laura) of Hurst, Texas; sisters, Eileen Burley of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Louise Mason of Longview, Texas, Kate Roberts, of Culdesac, Idaho and Carole Wyatt Nystrom of Bonners Ferry, Idaho; brothers Joe of Australind, West Australia, Jerry of Seattle, Washington and Dan of Bonners Ferry, Idaho; grandchildren, Keith, Nena, Blake and Cole; great-grandchildren, Kaliegh, Noah, Gage, Cora and Luke; and numerous nieces and nephews.