Samuel Henry Miller (June 26, 1921 – March 7, 2019) was an American businessman and philanthropist who propelled the growth of Forest City Material Co. from lumber to real-estate which became

Forest City Enterprises Forest City Realty Trust, Inc. was a real estate investment trust that invested in office buildings, shopping centers and apartments in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and the greater metropolitan areas of New York Ci ...

. He was the first

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

to receive an Archbishop Edward F. Hoban Award for service to the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Early life and education

Miller's father emigrated from

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

Ellis Island Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor, situated within the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, that was the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States. From 1892 to 1954, nearly 12 mil ...

where an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrant taking names allegedly gave him the surname of Miller. Miller earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that i ...

in 1941 and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accoun ...

from Harvard Business School in 1943.

Military service

Miller served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

Awards

Miller was presented received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Cleveland Diocese in 2015. He was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award at the ''

Cleveland Jewish News The ''Cleveland Jewish News'' (the CJN) is a weekly Jewish newspaper headquartered in Beachwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. The newspaper contains local, national, and international news of Jewish interest. History It was formed in 1964. It ...

'' on November 20, 2016 at Landerhaven.

Personal life

After serving in World War II, Miller met his future wife, Ruth Ratner (December 1, 1925 – November 26, 1996), in

Wickliffe, Ohio Wickliffe is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,750 at the 2010 census. A post office called Wickliffe has been in operation since 1843. The city was named after Charles A. Wickliffe, 11th United States Postmaster ...

, in 1946 at Leonard Ratner's summer cottage. Ruth was the daughter of Forest City Material Co. co-founder Leonard Ratner and sister of Albert Ratner; they married later that same year. Together, they had four children:

Aaron David Miller Aaron David Miller is an American Middle East analyst, author, and negotiator. He is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, focusing on U.S. foreign policy. He previously was vice president for new initiatives at the W ...

, Richard Miller, Gabrielle Miller, and Abraham Miller. Miller divorced Ratner in 1983 and she remarried Rabbi Phillip Horowitz (1922 – 2002). He married Maria Shanley in 1983. Shanley converted from Roman Catholicism to

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...

upon marrying Miller. In 1996, his first wife, Ruth, died from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. Miller had surgery in 2002 to treat

bladder cancer Bladder cancer is any of several types of cancer arising from the tissues of the urinary bladder. Symptoms include blood in the urine, pain with urination, and low back pain. It is caused when epithelial cells that line the bladder become ma ...

. He died on March 7, 2019. Services were held at the Park Synagogue in

Shaker Heights Shaker or Shakers may refer to: Religious groups * Shakers, a historically significant Christian sect * Indian Shakers, a smaller Christian denomination Objects and instruments * Shaker (musical instrument), an indirect struck idiophone * Cock ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

and his interment was at Bet Olam Cemetery.

References

Citations

Sources

* * *

External links

Cleveland Clinic profile: Samuel H. Miller

Profile: Samuel H. Miller
on

Bloomberg News Bloomberg News (originally Bloomberg Business News) is an international news agency headquartered in New York City and a division of Bloomberg L.P. Content produced by Bloomberg News is disseminated through Bloomberg Terminals, Bloomberg Tele ...

Obituary of Samuel Henry Miller
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Sam 1921 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 21st-century American businesspeople American people of Russian-Jewish descent American people of Polish-Jewish descent United States Navy personnel of World War II Businesspeople from Cleveland Military personnel from Cleveland United States Navy officers 20th-century American naval officers Case Western Reserve University alumni Harvard Business School alumni American chief executives Philanthropists from Ohio American real estate businesspeople 20th-century American Jews Ratner family 20th-century American philanthropists 21st-century American Jews