Marvin Lee Miller, born in Modesto, CA on July 3, 1939, to parents John Jay and Inga Miller. He graduated from Oakdale High School in 1957 and attended Modesto Junior College studying engineering. He worked for Welty Engineering for many years and retired from Nolte & Associates in Manteca in 2002. He was involved with many city and county projects over the years and learned to develop relationships with those he worked with. He was involved with the staking and layout of the Vintage Faire Mall in Modesto and the first Walmart in Ceres. Prior to his retirement, he was instrumental in the development of Oakdale’s Burchell Hill subdivision.
He was honorably discharged from the Army National Guard in 1962. He was stationed at Fort Ord on the Monterey Peninsula, where he would return to spend time over the years enjoying the area.
Marvin was a servant to the community. He drove the community ambulance in Escalon for many years and had a passion for Lions Club, which he inherited from his father who was also a Lion. He was a member of the Escalon, Modesto 500, Oakdale and Port Townsend clubs. He held many offices within these clubs and served as the 4A-1 District Governor; was on the SightLife Foundation in Seattle, WA and most recently on the San Francisco Lions Eye Foundation Board.
Marvin also inherited his father’s passion for woodworking. He created many projects that will continue to be enjoyed long after his passing. Other hobbies included stained glass work, rose gardening, spending time with family, bar-b-queuing (especially on his new Traeger), watching NASCAR, attending car shows and working on his latest passion, restoring a 1937 Ford flatbed truck that he acquired from his Uncle George who taught him to drive in it when he was 13 years old.
He always had a passion for cars. Marvin belonged to several car clubs over the years including Ecuri AWOL and the Rakers Car Club in Port Townsend, WA. He enjoyed racing his personally custom-built 427 SC Cobra on multiple tracks, including his favorite, Laguna Seca. The dashboard was personally signed by Caroll Shelby, Alan Grant and Peter Baer.
Marvin and his wife Kathie retired to Port Townsend, WA in 2004 where they built a beautiful new home. Marvin enjoyed the opportunity to fish for fresh seafood, entertain local and out of town friends and many other adventures with his good friend, Keith Marzan. They returned to Oakdale in 2017 and moved to Modesto in 2022.
He is survived by his wife, Kathryn, his sons Jeff (Kristen) and Mike and daughters Debbie (Fred) and Judie (Joel), eight grandchildren and nine great grandchildren and his sister Beverly Jones (Phillip) and family.
A Memorial Service to celebrate his life will be held on Saturday, January 14, 2023 at 2 p.m. at Modesto Covenant Church, 913 Floyd Ave., Modesto, CA. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his name to the Oakdale Lions Club (PO Box 550 Oakdale, CA 95361) or Lions Eye Foundation (PO Box 7999 San Francisco, CA 94115) or Modesto Covenant Church.
The Oakdale (Calif.) Leader
The Riverbank (Calif.) News
Jan. 11, 2023
