Judith Lemke Miller

On Friday, July 3, 2020, Judith Lemke Miller of Jessup, MD passed away peacefully. Beloved wife of Donald Miller Sr. Loving mother of Cindy Merrill, Don Miller Jr. (Sharon), David Miller (Kathy), Tracy Bickel (Joe) and the late Donna Miller. Cherished sister of John Lemke Jr. (Phyllis) and the late Nancy Whitley. Devoted grandmother of Sami, Bobby, Megan, Danielle, Andrew, Miller, Emily and Olivia. Great-grandmother of Kairi. Judith is also survived by many other loving family and friends.

Judy was born March 13, 1940 to John and Emily Lemke and raised in Louisville, KY with her sister, Nancy and brother, John. She attended and graduated from Louisville’s Mercy Academy in 1958 where she formed lifetime friendships with her classmates.

After graduation from Mercy and prior to beginning college coursework, Judy walked horses for a summer job with her sister at Churchill downs where she met Don Miller. Don, originally from New York, had moved to Kentucky to be a thoroughbred race horse jockey. What started as a blind date and a simple kiss ended with more than 60 years of marriage. The two were married November 7, 1959.

Shortly after, the couple moved to Maryland where year ‘round racing was taking place with the opportunity to put down roots and have steady work in one location. During those years, Judy maintained the household and finances, worked in her own business as a seamstress, made many of the clothes the family wore, and she and Don raised four children, Cindy, Donnie, David and Tracy.

In 1977 they moved to a small farm in Jessup, MD and began the work of fencing the property and building a barn to further the dream of owning and training Thoroughbred horses. Throughout these years, Judy joined Don directly in the care and training of Thoroughbreds. From cleaning stalls at the racetrack, to feeding the horses and caring for mares and foals on the farm. She was an avid gardener who grew enough produce to can fresh vegetables and make jams for the family.

Judy was an entrepreneur. In 1987 she began Marlboro Motorama, a car show and swap meet that operated once a year, and then twice a year, out of the old Marlboro racetrack. She was an early adopter of the Mac computer, learning the ins and outs of personal home computing and graphic design in support of the event. Marlboro Motorama continued on successfully for 8 years. As a skilled bookkeeper and office administrator, she also worked several years doing tax preparation for H&R Block and managed all aspects of over 18 investment properties throughout the years.

Judy then spent her later working years supporting the Thoroughbred racing industry’s Maryland Jockey Club in the administrative offices, assisting the Group Sales and Marketing departments.

After Judy retired, she and Don spent time with family and traveled locally extensively, often in search of genealogic information. She spent numerous hours researching and recording family genealogy. She even volunteered for an effort to electronically enter records from Ellis Island into a database for genealogic use. She ventured back to Louisville as recently as 2019 for her 61st Mercy Academy class reunion and enjoyed caring for her grandchildren and great grandchild, and attended St. Lawrence the Martyr Church in Jessup.

For those interested in making a donation in lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Mercy Academy, 5901 Fegenbush Lane, Louisville, KY, 40228-1158. Please note: In memory of Judy Lemke Miller, Class of 1958.

Family and friends are invited to gather at the Gary L. Kaufman Funeral Home at Meadowridge Memorial Park, Inc., 7250 Washington Boulevard, Elkridge, MD 21075 on Wednesday, July 8, 2020 from 3 pm to 5 pm and 7 pm to 9 pm. A Celebration of Life Funeral Service will be held on Thursday, July 9 at 10:30 am at the Gary L. Kaufman Funeral Home with interment to follow at Meadowridge Memorial Park.