Carl Miller passed away December 12 in Spokane with his family. He will be missed and remembered.

Carl loved the Methow Valley, having grown up in a spirited family of boys that lived around Winthrop. Carl used to say that the reason his family moved so frequently was because the four boys were too much for the neighbors. One of his stories was about them riding the neighbor’s cows. He was a consummate storyteller with a gentle voice and a twinkle in his eye when relating his early adventures.

When Carl retired and returned to Winthrop from his career as a Spokane firefighter, he started his second career as a fund raiser for many nonprofits and steward of the Shafer Museum for over twenty years. His connections to the Valley and his work benefited everything he did, and he did plenty.

He and his wife Roxie enhanced the Shafer’s leadership and management, added new buildings and grounds. He started the ‘Rusty Metal Gang,’ a group that still improves, repairs, builds, maintains, and preserves an expanding number of artifacts, equipment, and buildings.

The Shafer Museum and Okanogan County Historical Society, with many other organizations and individuals in the Methow Valley and Spokane, are grateful for all he did over the years and for the lasting legacy he's left for future generations.