Thomas James Miller, Jr. (Tom or Tommy), 60, of Manassas, VA, went to be with the Lord on September 28th, 2020.
Tom was born in Saugerties, NY to Thomas James Miller, Sr. and Joyce Elaine (Knecht) Miller on January 9th, 1960. Tom graduated from Saugerties Senior High School in 1979 where he would beat the socks off his rivals in cross country and earned the title of New York State Wrestling Champion in the 105-pound Division.
Tom’s love of sports and an active lifestyle continued into adulthood where he achieved a third-degree black belt in Tae Kwan Do and was a franchisee of Smith’s Karate in Martinsburg, WV. During the 10 years he owned the Karate Dojo, Tom mentored and taught hundreds of students. In his forties, Tom was an active cyclist, often riding twenty-five miles on the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail on the weekends.
In the 1980s, Tom was married to Vickie (Repp) Tegeler and raised two sons, Josh and Matt, in Hagerstown, MD. Tom was heavily involved in the lives of his children and attended every sporting event and band competition. He was an active member of the South Hagerstown High School Rebel band boosters.
Tom attended Mountain State University, majoring in Organizational Leadership in the Associates Degree program. He started working at Hagerstown Lumber (now known as Maryland Millwork) in the early 1980s. He was also employed by Terminix for 18 years where was promoted to Service Manager for six years. After Terminix, Tom worked for Dixie-Narco, Frito-Lay Inc., and Shockey Precast Group until he joined Lockheed Martin in 2003 where he held the positions of Lieutenant for the Security Guard Force, a Document Control Specialist, and a Security Specialist. For the last five years, Tom worked as a Security Professional for ManTech International where he was entrusted to protect the nation’s most sensitive information, always going Above and Beyond.
Despite having a full-time job with ManTech, Tom also worked part time at Mister Kleen in the evenings and on weekends.
Tom married Paula J. (Warren) Miller on September 27th, 2008 in Woodbridge, VA where they attended Christ Chapel and were active members and disciples of Christ. He was involved in Outreach, Children’s, Couples, Worship, and Sports Ministries where he enjoyed playing for and coaching the men’s softball team.
Tom’s enthusiasm, energy, love for his family and friends, and welcoming smile were infectious. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, brother, son and uncle and had the ability to make you laugh with a goofy joke or expression.
Tom always found time for his family, despite not living nearby. He spent many hours on the road traveling to visit his sons and their families, never missing the chance to celebrate a birthday, the holidays, or important event. He could often be found on the sidelines cheering on his grandchildren at their sporting events and recitals.
Tom is preceded in death by Joyce Elaine (Knecht) Miller, mother; Albert Miller, grandfather; Lillian Miller, grandmother; Robert Miller, uncle; Lillian Miller, aunt; Mark Miller, cousin; and David McLeod, brother-in-law.
Tom is survived by his wife, Paula Miller of Manassas, VA; two sons, Joshua Miller (Amy) of Hagerstown, MD and Matthew Miller (Adri) of Chesapeake, VA; four siblings, Chris Miller (Kathy) of Waynesboro, PA, Dawn McLeod of Umatilla, FL, Dorene Bruno (Jeff) of Summerfield, FL, and Adrian Miller (Deborah) of Braselton, GA; his father, Thomas Miller, Sr. (Ruth) of Saugerties, NY; four grandchildren, Ella, Bryce, Lilly and Paxton; as well as multiple cousins, nieces, and nephews.
A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, October 10th, 2020 at 11 a.m. at Christ Chapel in Woodbridge, VA. A private viewing will be held for immediate family and he will be laid to rest at Blue Mountain Cemetery in Saugerties, NY during a private service at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that all donations may be made to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation – Team BAM in honor of Tom’s grandson, Bryce. Donations can be made via this link (http://fightcf.cff.org/goto/TomMillerTeamBAM) or a check can be made out to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (P.O. Box 5004, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5004); please include “Team BAM-Tom Miller” in the memo.
The family wishes to extend their sincere thanks to the hospital staff at Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center for their dedicated care of Tom while inpatient.
