Obituary of Phyllis O. Miller

Phyllis Oates Miller, 87, of State College, Pennsylvania died Saturday, January 16, 2021, at Foxdale Village.

Born June 12, 1933, in Winchester, VA, she was the daughter of the late Kenzel Oates and Hazel Pugh Oates of Capon Bridge, WV. On September 10, 1955, she married Verlis Miller, who preceded her in death on January 26, 2010.

She is survived by four children, Jennifer Koberna and her husband Paul, of Boalsburg, PA, Diane Miller Noble of Winchester, VA, Robert Miller and his wife Kathy, of Lincoln University, PA, and Teresa Miller and her husband Bruce Welch, of Boyce, VA. She is survived by one sister, Melanie Oates and her husband Roger, and one brother, Gary Oates and his wife Connie. She has seven loving grandchildren, Jeremy Miller, Nicholas Miller, Sarah Koberna, Kathryn Koberna, Eleanor Welch, Madalyn Welch, and Lucas Welch.

Phyllis graduated from Hood College in 1955 with a BS in Chemistry. She worked for many years as a chemist performing cancer research in Dr. Raymond Gottschalk's lab at the Veteran's Administration Hospital in Martinsburg, WV. After having her children, she worked as a librarian in the Frederick County Public School System (Virginia) for over 20 years. In retirement, she enjoyed volunteering for the Monroe Country Public Library and the Fisherman's Hospital in Marathon, FL.

Phyllis loved being in and on the water, especially pools, lakes, and oceans. During retirement, she and Verlis experienced many happy adventures on their boat, "Dreamtime", including a trip down the Intracoastal Waterway. At age 62, she and Verlis learned to SCUBA dive, and they enjoyed many years exploring the undersea world. This became her passion. She inspired her children, their spouses, and her grandchildren to learn to dive, and the family engaged in several wonderful dive trips together. Phyllis was a devoted wife, a loving mother, and a very proud and loving grandmother. She loved the sunrise and would wake her family to experience it, too. She treasured close friendships, and could often be found on her walkway overlooking the ocean in the late afternoons, chatting and laughing with her girlfriends. Being a determined individual, when she didn't find a house plan that she liked, she enrolled in an architecture course at a Lord Fairfax Community College, drew blue prints, constructed a model, and built her own home. She was an avid reader and remained interested in science and curious about the physical world throughout her life. She was strong, funny, adaptable, appreciative, and kind. Phyllis missed Florida during the last few years of her life, but she enjoyed being able to spend a lot of happy quality time with family while living in Pennsylvania.

The family would like to express their eternal gratitude to the kind and caring staff of Foxdale Village.

Private services will be held at a later date.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Coral Restoration Foundation, 89111 Overseas Highway Hwy, Tavernier, FL 33070 or at www.coralrestoration.org.

Arrangements are under the care of Koch Funeral Home, State College. Online condolences and signing of the guest book may be entered at www.kochfuneralhome.com.