William M. Miller

1926 - 2007

William Marion Miller, 80, passed away Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2007, at his home after a courageous battle with heart and kidney failure.
Memorial service: 11 a.m. Friday at First United Methodist Church, 800 Fifth St. Private entombment: Greenwood Mausoleum. Visitation: 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Thompson's Harveson & Cole Funeral Home.
Honorary pallbearers will be members of "The Swing" at Shady Oaks Country Club, "The Gangsome" at River Crest Country Club, and all employees of Miller & Miller Auctioneers, Inc.
Memorials: In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Jewel Charity Ball, Inc. benefiting Cook Children's Medical Center, Box 9800, Fort Worth, Texas 76147; or All Saints Health Foundation, Box 31, Fort Worth, Texas 76101-9988.
Bill was born Dec. 7, 1926, on a farm near Terral, Okla. He graduated from high school in Union Valley, Okla., and attended the University of Oklahoma and Southeastern Oklahoma State University. Both personally and professionally, Bill believed in the virtue of hard work. After serving in the Merchant Marine, he was a successful businessman. In 1954, he established Miller & Miller Auctioneers Inc., at a time when the auction business was a relatively new concept for liquidating construction equipment, oilfield trucks and drilling rigs. He grew his business into a national auction house, conducting up to 80 auctions per year covering the entire lower 48 states and Canada. In 1978, he conducted a series of five auctions in Alaska and Moses Lake, Wash., that at the time was the largest heavy equipment auction in history; liquidating all of the equipment used in building the 800-mile Trans-Alaskan Pipeline. Members of the auction industry credit Bill as an innovator for conducting auctions and as a catalyst for changing the perception of the auction industry to a new and acceptable way of asset management.
Outside work, one of Bill's early passions was the cattle business. He was an avid cattleman with ranches in Rhome and southern Oklahoma, where he raised prized polled Herefords; and his Chisholm Trail Ranch in Rhome was once home to the North American grand champion. When he wasn't at his ranch, Bill could often be found enjoying another passion, playing golf at Shady Oaks or Rivercrest. However, Bill's greatest joy came from his family. He often stated that it "warmed his heart" to be around his family. He enjoyed living in Fort Worth and truly appreciated the quality time spent with friends and family. He will be missed.
Bill was also a member of the National Auctioneers and Texas Auctioneers Associations, Associated General Contractors, All Saints Health Foundation, The Beavers, Worth Commandery No. 19, Kinghts Templar, Moslah Shrine Temple, Fort Worth Court No. 32, Royal Order of Jesters, Fort Worth Chapter and Council, Ridglea Country Club and City Club, as well as numerous other clubs and organizations.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Elsie; his son, Bill Jr.; and his great-granddaughter, Mary Howard McKee.
The family would also like to especially thank the following individuals for their extraordinary service: Mark, Carl, Amy, Theresa, Crystal, Jenna, Karen, Doyle, and Bill's team of dedicated physicians whom he and Judy referred to as "The Magnificent Seven."
Survivors: His wife of almost 28 years, Judy; his sisters, Edna Hennessee, Mary Kaiser and Sue McNair; his daughters and sons-in-law, Shirley and Stanley Orman, Nancy Kay and Stan Howard and Lisa and Don Mills; seven grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.