Margaret Ann Miller

Margaret Ann (Westbrook) Miller passed away peacefully at home on December 28, 2010 from leukemia. She spent her final weeks in her home of over 40 years with her beloved family, friends, and her dog, Ringo.

She was born November 4, 1941 in Jonesboro, AR. After the war, she moved with her mother and grandparents to Mississippi. At Provine High School in Jackson, Margaret Ann was universally admired for her smarts, compassion, and positive attitude, traits that fit her distinctions as head cheerleader, homecoming queen, and Miss Provine HS. She was a freshman cheerleader at the University of Mississippi where she enrolled on scholarship and graduated in 1962 with a BS in Biology. She completed her certificate in Medical Technology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, and, drawn to the environment of a hospital lab, took a full-time position there.

In 1965 Margaret Ann met with Bill (Billy) Miller, a former classmate who was home for the holidays from a PhD program at Harvard. Intending to discuss the 10th high school reunion, they found themselves much more interested in each other. A whirlwind courtship turned into a marriage proposal from Bill who encouraged Margaret Ann to "take a leap of faith" and live a life of adventure with him. They were married in Jackson on June 4, 1966, honeymooned on Nantucket, and began an adventure that would span 44 years.

After living in Cambridge MA for Bill's last year as a grad student, the newlyweds moved to Freiburg, Germany in 1967 for a post-doc program. Margaret Ann enjoyed practicing German outside of class and the many road trips with Bill to conferences and meetings. One trip included driving their VW bug into the USSR to attend a meeting in Leningrad, then driving back via Moscow, Eastern Europe, and the divided city of Berlin. Margaret Ann fell in love with the rich traditions of German Christmas, which became the spark for a reliably "all-out" celebration every year since.

In 1969, Bill and Margaret Ann moved to Berkeley CA when Bill joined the chemistry faculty at Cal. She made many lifelong friends through the chemistry community both at Cal and institutions around the world. Bill's students fondly remember dinners at the Miller house where Margaret Ann's Southern hospitality helped them feel so welcome.

Margaret Ann was very proud of her daughters, Alison and Emily. A model mom, she provided great support, encouragement, and just enough tough-love throughout their lives. The family shared many special times, particularly when Bill's work took them abroad. Sabbaticals in Cambridge, England and Munich, Germany took the family to Europe, and a summer trip in 1979 to Asia and Australia included a two-week stay in China.

Margaret Ann continued working in medicine, first at Mass General in Boston, then Peralta Hospital in Oakland. She worked at Berkeley Pediatrics as a medical technologist for more than two decades. Having lived in the Thousand Oaks area of Berkeley for 40 years, she was a part of the community and many neighbors were good friends. She was out daily walking one of her dachshunds in the neighborhood and on Solano Avenue. In recent years, she made many new close friends at Curves in El Cerrito.

A highlight in 2009 was coming back to Jackson with Bill to attend Provine High School's 50th reunion. Margaret Ann reconnected with many friends and enjoyed emailing and visiting with them then as well as again during another visit in 2010.

She was a devoted grandmother to Alison's children Ella (7) and Wes (3) and was looking forward to meeting Emily's twin girls (expected in Feb). She cherished her relationships with her son-in-laws, Scott and Patrick. She is survived by her mother, Jeane McDade, with whom she remained close. We will miss her dearly but her memory lives on through her family and the many friends who loved her.

We would like to thank our neighbors, extended family and friends who visited, especially those who provided significant support with Margaret Ann's care. Thank you to the hospice team who helped ease her pain in her final weeks. A celebration of life is planned for early June. If anyone wishes to make a donation please consider the Berkeley Humane Society, as Margaret Ann was so passionate in her love of animals: http://www.berkeleyhumane.org/donate/honor.