Congratulations to David Miller!
Deputy Lieutenant, Hilary Cochran, recently visited a former East Lothian Council Chief Executive, David Miller at his home in Haddington and presented him with a card from HM The Queen marking his 100th birthday.
Mr Miller was born in Almondbank, Perthshire in 1922 and, after graduating from St Andrews University with a 1st Class Honours degree in Law, he began his working career at a legal practice in Perth. In the early 1950s he made the move into local government, being appointed as a solicitor for Inverness County Council before moving to Longniddry in 1959 having been appointed as a legal assistant to East Lothian County Council. In the early 1960s David and his growing family moved to Haddington to the house in which he still lives and was later appointed as Depute County Clerk of East Lothian County Council and in his words, "I liked East Lothian and it seemed to like me".
On the reorganisation of Scottish local government in 1975, Mr Miller was appointed as the first Chief Executive of East Lothian District Council, a role he continued in until his retirement in 1987. His retirement was spent enjoying time with his wife, Mina, whom he had married in 1946 and they travelled extensively in Europe enjoying especially the wine areas of Germany, the Rhine and Mosel valleys. Sadly Mrs Miller later developed dementia and David was her carer for many years until her death in 2017 aged 91.
In addition to 3 children, David also has 7 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. He continues to remain busy regularly contributing to his personal diaries and is a keen follower of St Johnstone FC and records their games and scores. As a former cricketer, a very competent wicketkeeper (by his own estimation), he was very determined to achieve ‘100 not out’ and is now planning on continuing his ‘innings’ for the foreseeable future.
Deputy Lieutenant, Hilary Cochran added, “It was a pleasure to meet David Miller and to hear some of his tales of East Lothian’s past. It is so important to be able to celebrate and recognise the achievements of our older citizens and be part of this special occasion with friends and family members.