Human Interest Stories

Daughter honors father during John Hancock Center stair climb

Jamie Miller's last memory of her father riding a bike is bittersweet. It was during her family's vacation at Cannon Beach, Oregon, in May of 2010, and her dad was determined to pedal through the sand despite his deteriorating lung capacity. Jamie and her brother followed, assisting him.

"It was almost like helping someone learn how to ride a bike again," Jamie said. "We held onto his seat and pushed as he pedaled."

For years, Bob Miller biked in races and took friends and family on bike tours, always leading the pack. But in 2009, he noticed pedaling and controlling his breathing was becoming harder. After several doctors visits, he was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. It came as a shock because he had been in peak physical condition and had never smoked. X-rays showed the cancer had metastasized to other parts of his body. He went in for emergency brain surgery one week later to remove a tumor.

Jamie, her brother and mother stayed by her father's side for nearly one year. They knew the surgery was merely a precursor to more medical needs and that it wouldn't save his life. But instead of focusing on the grim present, Bob wanted to share as much as he could with his family. They traveled to one of his favorite places, the Grand Canyon, and spent time at the beach just as they had every other year.

"There were moments of despair and asking ‘Why me?', but we all wanted to be together as happy as we could be," Jamie said. "We wanted to make as many memories and talk to him as much as we could. I tried to imagine what I'd want to ask him if I got married and had kids, and wrote all that down."

Bob passed away from lung cancer on July 1, 2010, surrounded by his family at home. Soon after, Jamie and her brother honored their father's wish to live forever in their memories. They organized the first annual Bob Miller Memorial Bike Ride in Seattle and held it on September 19, 2010, his birthday. The ride raised funds for the Bob Miller Foundation, which supports early detection lung cancer research through Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

Nearly 70 people who knew Bob came together at the event, and every person in the room reminded Jamie of the good times she'd had with her father and how many lives he'd touched. It was the perfect memory to take with her on her move to Chicago later that month.

Jamie has found a way to honor her father in her new city. She is joining her coworkers at Lockton in Hustle Up the Hancock, a stair climb fundraiser for Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago. Jamie will join more than 4,000 other climbers on February 26 to ascend 94 floors of the John Hancock Center. The annual event raises $1 million each year to support local lung disease research, advocacy and education.

"I wanted to try to help keep my dad's legacy alive and educate people about lung disease," Jamie said. "This is another way for me to be able to do it, and it helps me meet more people in Chicago as I share my dad's story with them."

To support Jamie in her climb or to offer words of encouragement, visit www.lungchicago.org/jamiemiller.