Labor Passages: Longtime Labor, Political Activist Betty Miller Dies At 91
Thursday, August 12, 2010(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)
Lifelong labor union and political activist Betty
Miller (r), 91, known for her boundless energy and drive, died on August 7.
“Betty believed in action,” reports CLUW’s Carolyn Jacobson, “and
throughout her life went to bat for the causes she believed in, often leading
the charge.” A memorial celebration will be held at 2P Saturday, September 11
at the National Labor College. Miller worked as a "Rosie the Riveter" at a plant
in Baltimore during World War II, helping screw in the nosecones of B29 bombers.
She married fellow New Yorker Saul Miller – the former AFL-CIO director of
publications -- soon after the war, and worked as a union organizer and reporter
in a number of cities. After they settled in the Washington area in 1952, Betty
raised their four children while working full time at positions that included
Assistant Executive Secretary at the Montgomery County Education Association;
AFSCME Education Director and Assistant to the President, and Director of
Contract Administration at the Department of Labor, where she retired in 1984.
Miller got even more involved with volunteer activities after retiring,
managing Carlton Sickles’ campaign for Congress in 1986 and working in other
political campaigns. Her many community positions included serving as Public
Policy Committee Chair, Montgomery County Commission on Aging; Legislative Vice
President, United Seniors of Maryland; Education Chair, National Capital Union
Retirees; Chair, Friends of Histadrut; and board member for the Montgomery
County Fair Representation Committee, Mobile Med Inc., and National Council of
Senior Citizens. She was also an elected delegate to the Maryland Constitutional
Convention in 1967-68 and in 2007, she was nominated to the Maryland Women's
Hall of Fame. Miller is survived by brother Ken Elbaum, sister Sylvia Kasloff,
sons David (Nancy) and Jon (Cheryl) Miller, daughters Kate (Dave) Berkemeier and
Judy (Scott) Chambers, and six grandchildren. Donations may be made to the
Miller Family Trust Agreement of 1992 (a special needs trust for grandson
Danny); send to his father, David Miller, 273 Glenn Ave., Lawrenceville, NJ
08648.), or to the Princeton Child Development Institute. -
photo courtesy Carolyn Jacobson