Robin Lee Miller

ROBIN LEE MILLER (nee Martin), 60, of Catonsville, MD passed away on January 5, 2012. Robin was born on August 3, 1951 in Baltimore, Maryland. Robin graduated from Keough High School in 1969, received a BA in Human Services from the College of Notre Dame in 1998 and was employed at the National Security Agency from 1985-2000 and from 2003-2006. On April 27, 1996 Robin married Cole L. Miller at St. Paul’s By-The Sea Church in Ocean City, Maryland. Robin received many awards and achievements including outstanding performances in various job programs during her career at the National Security Agency's Blood Donor Program, Employee Relations, and the Suggestion Program. Robin is survived by her daughter Erin Lee West of Halethorpe, MD and her husband Bryan; her mother Audrey Lee Martin of Landsdowne, MD; her siblings Cathy Ann Garner of La Plata, MD and Shaun Lyle Martin of Halethorpe, MD; grandchildren Reed Matthew West of Halethorpe, MD and Ryan Jakob Miller of Lamsville, MD, cousins Colleen Parks of Mt. Airy and Sara Sealover of Maryland and many other cousins and nephews.

Family and friends are invited to gather at Gary L. Kaufman Funeral Home at Meadowridge Memorial Park, Inc. 7250 Washington Blvd., Elkridge, MD 21075 (exit 6 South off Rte. 100) on Tuesday, January 10, 2012 from 3-5 and 7-9pm. Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at St. Augustine RCC, Elkridge, MD on Wednesday, January 11, 2012 at 10:00am. Interment New Cathedral Cemetery. www.garylkaufmanfuneralhome.com

EULOGY AT THE SERVICE

When my phone rang a few weeks ago, it was the phone call that I knew was inevitable. Miss Robin was calling to tell me that she didn’t have long to live, but that she was at peace, looking forward to Christmas and making final arrangements. At that time, she asked me to speak here today. I was completely honored to be asked…and totally terrified. How do you adequately honor someone that you’ve known practically your whole life, and yet, perhaps not known some of the most important parts of them? So, with the help of her family and friends, I have put together something that I hope will make her proud.

I was about 4 or 5 when I met Robin and Erin at St. Joseph’s Monastery. It was a time of folk masses with Peter, Valerie, Jerry and Bonnie playing their hearts out, coffee and donuts, picking grapes, pool parties, picnics and mass in the grove on Sunday in the summer.

Through the eyes of a child, and probably the adults too, in many ways, there was no better place to be: good friends, good times, always good music. Friendships deepened, and we celebrated life on a regular basis.

As I grew and came to know Robin, it was clear that her most important role in life was being a good mother. As a single mother, she managed to balance her dedication to Erin, her career, her schooling and still found time to have fun. She had a zest for life and wanted to take Erin places and do things that were fun and enriching. Above all though, she wanted to make sure that Erin had a good foundation in life, and Robin lived the values that she wanted Erin to learn. She had a strength and perseverance – there was no such thing as “not trying” and giving up was not an option. And, she loved with all her heart.

While she was busy raising Erin, she graduated from college with a BA in Human Services in 1998. It took 13 years, but she was determined to see it through. She and Erin both graduated college the same year, and Robin thought that was significant. Perseverance pays off! Her career at the NSA was fulfilling and she made many friends. She had opportunities through the years to excel and she embraced new challenges with a positive spirit. Robin was happy in her work, but her happiest moments were with those she loved the most.

Robin persevered in her quest to love and be loved. She loved with her whole heart, and waited for the one who really knew how to complement and complete her – our dear Cole. Their devotion to each other, their spiritual and emotional kinship, was truly a blessed union. Through her first diagnosis in 1999, through remission and recurrence, they stood together, attending each and every appointment with hope in their hearts, embracing the highs and the lows together and finding peace and guidance in their shared faith.

To Robin, faith was very important. She had an unwavering religious dedication and drew strength from her connection to her church. She had a special affinity for the Blessed Mother, and the story of Bernadette and Lourdes was especially significant. After Robin’s initial cancer treatment, she and Cole made a pilgrimage to Lourdes. It was a life changing and spiritually transforming trip. It reaffirmed her faith and renewed her belief in miracles. And, perhaps unsurprisingly, Robin’s cancer was truly in remission.

The next few years saw Erin married and a joyful Robin as mother of the bride. One of her happiest moments was just a few short years away, when a new love was born into her life in the form of her grandson, Reed.

Robin embraced caring for Reed with enthusiasm and joy. She cherished every day they spent together and especially relished the holidays. Her role as Mom Mom gave her hope and a passion for living. In every way that she had been limited as a single mother, she now had the time and energy to spend with Reed. They read together and played and she loved him like no other. Robin had a huge and loving heart and had a special way of being supportive: a genuine excitement when things went well, a sympathetic despair or a fierce defense when things went wrong, and always a heart full of love and tender support. In my memories, though I was a child, she respected me and validated my opinions and feelings. She never made me feel that because I wasn’t an adult that I didn’t deserve to be heard. I know without question that Reed has similar memories and so many more, and I know that we all can easily remember Robin’s full and loving heart.

In the last five years, in addition to relishing every moment with Reed, Robin continued to honor her values of perseverance, dedication and religious faith. She was active in her community at St. Augustine’s, serving as the President of the Sodality in 2007. At that time, she made it her mission to cultivate a group of younger women to become active in the Sodality. She spoke at all the masses and gave witness to her true and powerful dedication to her faith.

After her re-diagnosis in the Spring of 2009, it was her love for her family and her faith, and her perseverance that kept her going. Through her good days and bad, it was thoughts of her family that pushed her to continue seeking treatment. Her faith in God and dedication to the Blessed Mother got her through the pain, especially as it worsened. To those she spoke with, she didn’t complain or feel sorry for herself, but rather embraced that God would deliver her when He was ready. For her part, she was ready, though it worried her to leave her family. She saw beauty and love in Heaven and prayed for those she knew she was leaving behind.

For my own part, aside from our phone conversation, I missed having the goodbye talk with Robin, but maybe that was for the best. She was a significant person in my life and I know we knew how much we loved each other. I respected Robin and her perseverance… her willingness to push through, no matter the odds, and her kind and loving heart. She and her family are precious to me, and while I had a few moments alone with her at the hospital, I promised that I would always remain in their lives. I know Robin’s spirit is close by and that she will keep watch over Audrey, Cole, Erin and Reed and the rest of her family.