Miller Davis

Miller was born October 15, 1931, in Seneca, near Lumberton, in Lamar County, Mississippi. Miller was preceded in death by his parents, Bartoe Bert Davis and Dora M. Davis, brothers Doyle, Cecil, Hugh, L.E. (Lonnie), and N.R. (Bud) and twin sister, Mildred Newton and his youngest sister Lucille Davis.
Miller was the beloved husband of his wife of 65 years and is survived by Elizabeth Legett Davis, of Gulfport; and daughter, Gayle (Jerry) Forster from Winchester, TN, Brent (Laura Myers) Davis from Viera, FL, Terri (Tom) Whittington of Hurricane, WV. He is also survived by, his sister Marguerite McGuire, 98 years old of Panama City, Florida.
Miller and Elizabeth were blessed with six grandchildren; Laura (Nick) Knight, Mike (Christina) Forster and Daniel Forster, Madeline Davis, Mason Davis and Christina Whittington and four great grandchildren; Ella and Emma Forster and Jackson and Cooper Knight, as well as a host of nieces and nephews.
Miller turned 92 years old on October 15th and fell into the arms of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, joining his perfect and eternal realm, when he took his last breath at 6:00 PM Saturday, October 28, 2023. How perfectly poignant of Miller–our dad, to tap-out promptly at 6:00 PM, in Miller Davis fashion.
Miller was a man of integrity, instructing even his daughters to have a firm, handshake. He was a natural protector and caregiver, an expert with attention to detail, he did not always like being the center of attention, he worked hard and was our “Superman”. He rarely complained, he had little tolerance for nonsense and let that be known, he had very high expectations of us and others, that he intended to be met. He was a wonderful dad and an excellent provider for his family; and he was extremely generous, and always grateful for help from others. He constantly expressed gratitude up until the very end.
Miller came from humble beginnings during lean times of the depression. He was in the Army National Guard, Dixie Division, he attended Pearl River community college, before obtaining his degree in Business at The University of Southern Mississippi, where he met Elizabeth’s twin, Charline, and asked her out on a date. Charline instead, set him up on a date with Elizabeth, a nursing student, also at the university. Miller and Elizabeth married in June of 1958 and had their first child in June 1961.
After college Miller soon found his career as a United States Secret Service agent, in 1963 and he retired in 1989. Miller had many protection details of US Presidents, candidates and foreign dignitaries, cases and campaigns to cover during his career. He busted one of the largest counterfeiting cases in US history while working in the Chattanooga, Tennessee field office during the 1970’s. In 1978 he became the agent in charge of the field office in Charleston, West Virginia and Charleston became home for many years.
Miller was a lifelong member as a Southern Baptist. His family was guided by a model of fierce determination and high standards, he was a gentleman, a loyal friend, a brave heart and protector of his family, friends, loved ones and his country. He was a grill master and loved hosting Saturday night steak dinners for his family and friends.
Golf was something he worked hard at and became very good at after retiring. He got his hole in one! Miller had a large and fun group of golfing buddies who traveled annually to different locations to enjoy some of the finest golf courses. He made some grandchildren golf clubs and bought them all the gear. He tried hard to pique their interest in the sport. Unfortunately, we don’t have any master golfers yet.
Miller/Dad had been through so much in the final weeks of his life and somehow, he retained his wit, and he was so very strong and never complained once about pain or suffering. That was such a blessing. Miller–our dad was so loved and will be sorely missed.
“Dadisms”: “leave things better than you found them”. “If you cannot say something good, then don’t say anything at all”. “Too much of a good thing isn’t good”.