Located in the heart of the University of Nevada, Reno campus lies a number of granite monuments that make up a few structures that commemorate the many donors and benefactors for the University. Next to a circular stone meditation garden is a small rose garden that contains a granite monument that reads:
PRESENTED BY
NENA AND EDD MILLER
IN MEMORY OF THEIR FATHERS
N.E. MILLER AND
THOMAS WHITAKER |
I didn't discover any information on the fathers of Nena and N. Edd Miller, but I did discover some interesting information on the Miller couple. Through doing some online research I was able to determine that Nena was a former First Lady to husband Edd Miller, who was president of the University of Nevada, Reno from 1965 to 1973. Edd Miller passed away in 2004 and Nena Miller passed away in 2010. I located two online obituaries for Nena Miller and both describe her passion for higher learning. She was an active member of the Reno community who continuously supported the University. The following bios highlight her and her husband's lives:
Former University First Lady Miller passes away
Edwina “Nena” Miller, the widow of former University of Nevada President N. Edd Miller, passed away Oct. 22 in Reno following a brief illness. She was 88. Miller and her husband came to Reno in 1965 with N. Edd Miller’s appointment as president. N. Edd Miller served until 1973, when the couple left Reno following N. Edd Miller’s appointment as president of the University of Maine at Portland-Gorham. The Millers returned to Reno in 1988, and were known in the area for their extensive charity and service to the community. N. Edd Miller passed away in 2004. Nena Miller, a native of Conroe, Texas, was born Aug. 7, 1922. She attended Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where she met her husband. The couple was married for more than 60 years. Nena Miller was a well-respected figure in Reno, known for her charity work for numerous local, regional and national causes. “She just gravitated toward things that needed help and supplied it,” a longtime friend, Nettie Oliverio, told the Reno Gazette-Journal. “She touched a lot of folks around here.” Nena Miller’s accomplishments included the establishment of day care and kindergarten schools for low-income and special needs children; directing Early Childhood Education programs; and her support for the University’s “Dean’s Future Scholars” program, which has helped hundreds of low-income youth graduate from local high schools and then become first-generation college graduates from the University. “She had her finger on a lot of good things in the community,” Oliverio told the Reno Gazette-Journal. Miller is survived by her daughter, Cathy, of Santa Fe, N.M.; son, Kenn, of San Gabriel, Calif.; brother, Thomas Whitaker of Houston; four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. ~source
Nena Miller, education advocate, wills bronze statue to University
The University of Nevada, Reno recently added a bronze statue to the front entrance of the William J. Raggio building. The statue, which depicts children playing, was willed to the College of Education in November 2011 after receiving it as a trust gift from Nena Miller, who passed away on October 22, 2010. Miller was an education advocate and wife of former University of Nevada, Reno President N. Edd Miller, who served as president from 1965-1973. During her lifetime, Miller was an active member of the Reno community who continuously supported the University. Mitch Klaich, the associate director of development of University programs in the College of Education, witnessed Miller's strong support of College programs, including the Dean's Future Scholar Program and the Child and Family Research Center. "Nena was a friend and donor of the College of Education for years and just a really special woman to the University," Klaich said. Miller's will expressed her desire that her estate facilitate the move of the statue from her front yard to the University, specifically to an area near the College of Education building. The estate paid for all costs associated with the move and installation of the statue. Chris Cheney, dean of the College of Education, hopes that the statue becomes a focal point for education students. "I hope the statue is something that education students will remember as a part of their experience here at the University," she said. "I think it could be one of those things on campus that students not only have a special affinity for, but helps create memories." Cheney also intends on having the statue become a symbol for the College of Education. She would like to see images of it used on the College website, brochures and possibly other materials that are used to promote education programs. Miller additionally bequeathed the University a watercolor painting by Craig Sheppard that was presented to her husband and is entitled N. Edd Miller UNR Commencement 1974. Sheppard was a renowned artist and the former chair of the University's Art Department. It was accepted by the Special Collections and University Archives Department and added to its collection. ~source