Marilyn Randolph Miller-Fox

Marilyn Miller Fox passed away peacefully on Wednesday, October 21, 2015 surrounded by family who loved her. She was born October 1,1929 in Appalachia, Virginia to her parents Ray and Ruth Frazier Miller. Her childhood was spent roaming the mountains of Appalachia, where her father was police chief and her mother was a self described housewife. At age12, she became a member of the National Society of the Children of the American Revolution.

Her passion for helping others was strong and after graduation from Appalachia High School, she ventured to Richmond, Virginia, obtaining her RN in nursing from the Medical College of Virginia. At MCV she participated in the first kidney transplant in the Southeast.

She married a young urologist from Raleigh and for the next several years she supported his service to his country as a First Lieutenant in the US Army, stationed in San Antonio Texas at Fort Sam Houston and as commander of the U.S. Army medical center in Hohenfels, Germany.

After they moved to Raleigh in 1960, Marilyn immersed herself in her new community, building a life for her family and creating lifelong friendships. She was a long-time member of the Junior League of Raleigh, she volunteered for anything that had to do with the arts or children and kicked her legs high dancing the can-can for the League Follies. She was a member of the Raleigh Fine Arts Society, the North Carolina Art Society, a docent with the North Carolina Museum of Art, a volunteer with the then Methodist Orphanage, a member of the English-Speaking Union and always the first in line to attend any Elliot Engel’s lecture. From Machu Picchu in the Andes to the pyramids of Egypt, she loved the adventure of travel and meeting new people. She was a member of the Carolina Country Club and the Monday Literary and Luncheon Society. She was dedicated to the Church of the Good Shepherd and along with the other “ladies of the church,” meticulously needlepointed the church kneelers, which still serve to comfort worn knees. She was a prolific lifelong reader and learner, taking cooking, bridge, painting, tennis, needlepoint and German lessons.

Always willing to do whatever she could for her family, she was always the first to volunteer at school, drive carpool or sew a costume. She attended countless basketball, tennis, ballet, Madrigal Feasts, piano, strings, theater and riding events, enthusiastically clapping regardless of the caliber of the performance. Her grandchildren always looked forward to Sundays, when they would go to their Nana’s and enjoy games, her cooking and the treats their parents didn’t want them to eat.

To borrow a line from her favorite poet, Boris Pasternak, she had the heart of a woman in love with life.

Marilyn is survived by her daughter, Sarah Wesley Fox and her husband, Craig Bradford Wheaton; her two grandchildren, Bradford (“Ford”) Fox Wheaton and Sarah Wesley Wheaton; and her cousin, June Hutchison.

She was preceded in death by her son, Powell Graham Fox III.

Following a private burial service at Oakwood Cemetery, a memorial service celebrating Marilyn’s life will be held Saturday, October 24, 2015 at 11:00 am at the Church of the Good Shepherd, 125 Hillsborough Street. The family will receive friends in Shepherd’s Hall following the service and friends are welcome at Sarah Wesley and Craig’s home.

In lieu of flowers, those wishing to remember Marilyn are asked to make a donation to the Junior League of Raleigh, 711 Hillsborough St., Raleigh, NC 27603, or the Foundation of Hope, 9401 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh, NC 27617.

Arrangements by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, Saint Mary's St., Raleigh.