On Wednesday close to 50 ladies gathered to celebrate Oliver Miller’s 90th birthday, an occasion that highlighted quite an amazing lady. She is a senior living a very active lifestyle; although retired she still assists with various organisations.
The women who came to honour Ms Miller at the home of Gaye Randolph, praised her for the many roles she has undertaken in the community.
They presented her with a cake and voiced their pleasure that she had remained in their midst over the years and they still regarded her as their “Kingpin” for advice and wisdom within their midst.
“It was wonderful afternoon with nice tea and lovely music and I enjoyed it,” said Mrs. Miller.
As a young woman in her 20s, Mrs. Miller found herself in Cayman after travelling from Rayleigh, Essex, England to Jamaica in 1946 as a youth missionary. While there she helped to start Knox College and travelled around Jamaica as part of her missionary work.
In 1949 she moved to Cayman and helped the Reverend George Hicks to start the Cayman Island High School but would return to England after only 18 months.
However, love was in the air and Ray Miller, a young Caymanian, wanted her as his bride and went to England to make her his wife and bring her back to the Cayman Islands.
The couple, along with a new addition to the family, baby Kathryn, returned to the Cayman Islands to live. The family would soon grow to include son Nigel and Mrs. Miller would spend her time raising her family.
In later years, her career took her to assist at the Cayman Island High School. She also leant her talents working at the Tradewinds newspaper and the Caymanian Weekly, which was followed by filling the post as the first Government Information Services officer and youth community worker for the National Council of Voluntary Services.
She retired at age 75 but has not stopped working. She started the National Council of Voluntary Organisations, the Girls’ Brigade and co-founded the Pink Ladies organisation along with Evelyn Andresen.
Mrs. Miller was also awarded the Queen’s certificate and badge of honour in 1967. She received the Member of the British Empire award and was named one of five Quincentennial Women. She also received a Spirit of Excellence Award on National Heroes’ Day.
Throughout her long and distinguished career and life Mrs. Miller has remembered words of wisdom written to her from her father, who was a London postmaster. “Remember the postage stamp, its usefulness consist in its ability to stick to one thing until it gets there,” he wrote.
To this day Mrs. Miller has used those words to apply that “stick-a-ability” in whatever she does.
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Congratulations, Mrs Olive!!! Cayman owes you so much for your many good works and much more than that, for your example of public spiritedness and sheer hard work. God Bless You!!
Note for the Heroes Committee: have you honoured Mrs Miller? If not, you should consider it fast.