Patience seems to be in short supply in the world today, even when it comes to matters of the heart. When Jim Miller met Aileen Yackel through church, he knew she was the one. Aileen had her sight set on becoming a school teacher at a time when teaching positions were reserved for the unmarried. The couple courted for nearly a decade while Aileen taught and Jim tried his hand at running a small business. The decision about marriage was forced when Jim was offered a job that would move him from Michigan to Buffalo, NY. His patience paid off when his marriage to Aileen spanned sixty years.
Jim’s ambition was rivaled only by his skill. He had a great aptitude for all things mechanical, from his early years in radio repair to the eventual founding of his own company, the J.E. Miller Corporation. Just five years after the start of the company, Jim built his first manufacturing plant in 1957 on East Fayette Street. His ambition gave him the focus to learn from his mistakes and ultimately to run a successful small business.
The Millers had the perseverance needed to build their company from scratch, but that trait was also present in their personal lives. When Aileen’s health began to fail in the early 1970s, Jim sold the company, which continues today. Jim visited Aileen twice a day and ate dinner with her each evening when she was living in a nursing facility. The kindness and compassion of both Jim and Aileen is something that friends remember fondly, and is the legacy we intend to protect.
Aileen passed away in 2001 and Jim in 2008. Their foresight in establishing charitable provisions in their estate plan will allow both their kindness and the fruits of their success to continue supporting the community they called home.
Creating a fund at the Community Foundation is a great tool for charitably-minded people, like the Millers, who are looking for a way to have their values—including generosity—live on. While we are primarily known for our attention to the stewardship of charitable dollars, we pride ourselves equally on our stewardship of donor stories. If you would like to learn more about preserving your story through the Community Foundation, please call Jenn Owens at (315) 422-9538 or email jenn@cnycf.org.