Ruth Lorraine Miles

January 12, 1934 – July 1, 2026

Ruth Lorraine Miles (nee Johnson) was born in Denver, Colorado on January 12, 1934, the third child of Edgar and Elsie (Nylund) Johnson. She went by her middle name, Lorraine. She passed away peacefully at home on July 1, 2026.

A couple of weeks after Lorraine’s first birthday, her mother passed away. Her auntie, Esther (Nylund) Carlson, came to the aid of Edgar and assisted in the care and rearing of Lorraine and her siblings, Arlene and Wayne.

Lorraine’s beloved stepmother, Eugenia Jarman, came into her life with the marriage of Edgar and Eugenia on May 31, 1941. About four years later the family of five moved to a home known as Gray Gables at 721 N. Boulevard Street, Gunnison, Colorado.

Growing up in Gunnison, Lorraine spent many summers with her Nylund grandparents in DeBeque, Colorado. But by 1950, she was living with her aunt Helen (Jarman) Houle in the Mid-Wilshire district of Los Angeles, California.

While attending Los Angeles High School, Lorraine met her future husband, Donald Stahler. But before that wedding, she enrolled in school at the Colorado State College of Education (University of Northern Colorado) to pursue a teaching degree. She left college to become a stewardess just before her 21st birthday. United Airlines flew Lorraine and other women to Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming for six weeks of training. The class was flown back to Denver for the graduation ceremony.

Not long after graduation in Denver, Lorraine was selected by United Airlines president, William Patterson, to be in several promotion photographs. This was during some construction at Chicago O’Hare airport, where she was based. Her flying career continued until shortly before her marriage to Donald on September 14, 1956, in Los Angeles. To this union was born one child, Leslie Stahler. Lorraine and Donald were divorced after nearly five years of marriage.

From Los Angeles, Lorraine and Leslie moved back to Denver. There she worked at the National Jewish Hospital. Ultimately they moved to Greeley where Lorraine finished her teaching degree. With her degree in hand, she and Leslie moved back to Denver. She taught kindergarten through third grade beginning in 1964.

Later, Lorraine met and married the true love of her life, Stanley Miles, on August 26, 1967, in Greeley. About three years later, Stan adopted Leslie (Stahler) Miles. Stan also received a teaching degree. Lorraine and he taught in the Denver Public Schools until the close of the 1992 school year. The couple and Leslie moved to a small ranch on Riverdale Road in Brighton while Lorraine and Stan were teaching. In 2000, Lorraine and Stan relocated to Fruita.

Lorraine traveled extensively, including visits to Leslie and her husband, Terry Vice, when they worked for United States embassies in Madrid, Spain, and Wellington, New Zealand. If one can be addicted to reading, then Lorraine had a bad case. She read books on her Kindle much faster than Leslie could find and download the next book.

She is survived by her daughter, Leslie (Miles) Vice and her husband Terry Vice of Fruita; her granddaughter, Hillary (Vice) Daniels and her husband Shane Daniels of Fruita; grandson, Tyler Vice and his wife Victoria (Reid) Vice of Norfolk, Virginia; and her great-grandchildren, Elsie and Annie Daniels of Fruita, and Michael and Matthew Vice of Norfolk.

Lorraine was preceded in death by her husband, Stanley Miles; her parents, Edgar and Elsie Johnson; and her siblings, Arlene (Johnson) Wynn and Wayne Johnson.

There will be a memorial service at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery of Western Colorado, 2830 Riverside Parkway, at 3:00 PM on July 14, 2026. The family will have a private gathering following the memorial service.

The family is deeply indebted to the caregivers of Hope West, particularly Tina, Reyna, Teri, Barb, Bobby, Cindy, Shelton, Angela, and Beth. Without their selfless and loving assistance and guidance, Lorraine’s transition would have been so much more difficult.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Hope West, 3090 N. 12th Street, Grand Junction, 81506, https://www.hopewestco.org/.