Skip Miller laid down his pen on Friday, April 7, 2023. He passed away peacefully surrounded by the love and company of his devoted wife and three children. He leaves behind countless writings and a pot full of manuscripts for his wife Sandy, his children Jessica, Shane, and Brent to treasure and share with his three grandchildren: McCarthy, Michael, and Jeremy. Skip's sisters Judith Dewey and Dawn Brooks along with copious nieces and nephews also survive him. Waiting on the other side, Skip joins his parents Emma Louise and Melvin Eugene Miller, his sisters Connie and Ellen, and scores of good dogs from his 73-year tenure on earth.

After an award-winning newspaper career, and many more years continuing his craft independently, it is nearly impossible to tell the story of our favorite storyteller. It is both burden and blessing to be tasked to find the words sufficient to remember Skip. His wit and humor will long be remembered by all who knew him or read his work. We are grateful to share some of his own words: "Skip Miller was born in Pennsylvania, grew up in New York, and spent his adult life in Virginia. After 40 years as a newspaper editor, columnist, and reporter, he turned to freelancing and writing fiction. He enjoyed blues music, photography, fishing, and spiritual discussions with his German Shepherd Dog."

This was his brief summation for the public world, though his family wants to share just a bit more. Skip gained some unique, noteworthy knowledge over the years.

Skip died knowing a few things many people overlook. He knew fishing is the best way to not talk to folks and still spend quality time with them. A good burger might kill you, but it's totally worth the risk. The quest for the perfect pen is akin to the Knights Templar and their search for the Holy Grail. Zapping camel crickets and flies with rubber bands in the garage is as much fun as shooting pool or darts. Watching a thunderstorm roll in on a screened-in porch beats out even the best classic western on TNT. He died knowing a good dog by your side is almost as important as a good woman, sometimes maybe more. Skip knew, above all, that he was born to write, and he hoped others enjoyed the body of work he created. Most notably, Skip wrote Tidewater Fishing, a local angler's guide to fishing the region. He also more recently published A Man Walked Into a Bar, and Watch Your Nuts; The Bad Guys are Coming. He leaves behind countless other novels, short stories, poems, articles, essays, and what-nots.

During his decades long career between the Syracuse Herald-Journal, Fayetteville Observer, Virginian Pilot, and Daily Press, Skip enjoyed mentoring young writers almost as much as he enjoyed the stories he discovered along the way. Those he mentored will likely agree-three pages would quickly become three paragraphs under his editor's pen. He taught writers to keep the good stuff and trash the rest. This is perhaps the best notion of his legacy in writing, work, and life, which were pretty much all the same to him…keep the good stuff.

The family invites friends to remember the good stuff at W. J. Smith and Son Funeral Home on Saturday, April 29 at 5 p.m. They ask that you leave a memory or story of Skip on this site so they might share a bit of your joy from his life. Skip's favorite charity was the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating some good stuff to them at:

https://secure.cbf.org/site/Donation2?df_id=1502&mfc_pref=T&1502.donation=form1