Roll Call Tribute

Travis Milton Miller 

May 18, 1946 - September 24, 2024 

Travis Milton Miller, age 78, passed away on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, in Fort Worth, Texas.

A Memorial Service will be held at 3:00 PM on Sunday October 13, 2024, at Trinity United Methodist Church, located at 1200 W. Green Oaks Blvd, Arlington, TX 76013, with Reverend Ben Disney of Trinity United Methodist Church, officiating.

Travis was born on May 18, 1946, in a small hospital in Jasper, Texas where he lived until his father was accepted into Texas A&M and the family moved to College Station. He loved music even at that early age and as a small child loved to watch the Texas Aggie Band practice, under the direction of Col. Adams. A fact which Col. Adams did not like being reminded of years later when Travis took his turn at being a student at A&M, and he finally got to play in the Aggie Band. His father graduated with a Mechanical Engineering degree and, with his work for Tennessee Gas, Travis and his family were moved all around the eastern part of the United States. Travis graduated from Eden High School in upstate New York where he was a member of the National Honor Society, performed in the high school band, a Jazz Band and got bitten by the acting bug.

Travis attended Texas A&M University where he played in the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band and performed in the Aggie Players. As an engineering major he spent a summer internship at NASA working on the Gemini Program. The following year he returned to A&M and changed his Major from engineering to education with teaching fields of Theater and English. While he loved working at NASA he decided to follow his passion for Theater. It was also at A&M that he met a local girl and fellow student, Mary Griffin, while singing and performing in a folk group together on campus. The day after graduating and being commissioned into the Army, he and Mary were married in the oldest Methodist church in the county. Not long after, Uncle Sam sent the couple to Columbus, Georgia where Travis was trained in heavy mortars. After graduating top of his class they were posted to Germany, first in Neu-Ulm where he was the Asst. Community Leader to the Col. who was the commander for that area. That is where their oldest daughter, Tamera, was born in the military hospital in Augsburg. His second assignment was as the “Officer in Charge” of the VII Corps Road Show, a special unit of theater actors and tech people put together by the General to entertain and inform the troops. He spent the final years of his tour in Germany traveling all over posts in VII Corps area doing set up, 2 shows, take down and moving on to the next.

After Germany he left the Military and returned to Texas to get his master’s degree in accountancy followed by getting his Certified Public Accountants License. Before graduating he began working for Stewart Title where he became Controller after graduation. A couple of years later he was promoted to President of Stewart Title of Arkansas, and then he was transferred to California where he was Controller for the northern area of California. He served 5 years there before returning home to Texas, this time to Longview, Texas where he worked as Controller for Griffins Jewelers. It was here that their second child, Christianne, was born. Throughout his travels he always found a way to find time for his music and theater. In 1992 the family moved to Ft. Worth to allow him to pursue a professional acting career where he worked many short-term acting jobs in the area. He filmed several commercials, most notably, a Chucky Cheese Commercial, which aired for years and was shown across the United States. He spent four years working for Living History Productions, where he traveled across the United States in a one man show as Benjamin Franklin, bringing history to school kids as well as performing in many of their historical films for children. It was also at this time that he was a featured extra in “Leap of Faith”, a Steve Martin film. He loved the acting but not the time away from family. So, he returned home deciding that his passion for acting could be achieved in community theater, most recently at Artisan Center Theater where he enjoyed acting with his entire family. They estimate that over his lifetime he performed in well over 300 productions.

After returning to Texas, he worked as director of the N.A.W.I.C. Education Foundation (The National Association of Women in Construction). He was there for several years before becoming the Controller for Weldon Mechanical where he worked for the next 20 years. He sang with Schola Cantorum of Texas and played in the Greater Fort Worth Community Band with his sister as well as singing and playing at Trinity United Methodist Church for 30 years. In his later years, Travis took great joy in bringing Santa to kids through the entire month of December. Throughout his life it must be said that he lived with great love and joy.

Travis is preceded in death by his father Clinton Everette Miller and his mother Velma Estelleen Odom.

Travis is survived by his wife Mary; daughters, Tamera and Christianne; sister Rebecca Miller, brother Clinton Miller wife Linda, brother Laurence Miller wife Debbie, and sister Christa Simpson husband Rick; niece Jennifer Carr husband Alex and son Lucus: nephews James Miller, son Andrew, Ricky Simpson and wife Mikenna.

Honorary pallbearers will be Mike Hathaway, Adam Livingston, Rick Vaughn, Bill Gross, Dick Grice, Jim Criswell, Phil Hardin and Bob Flocke.

Memorials may be given to Trinity United Methodist Church Choir, the Greater Fort Worth Community Band, Tunnels to Towers, and Wounded Warriors.

IN THE CARE OF
Shannon Rose Hill Funeral Chapel & Cemetery