Bob and Charlotte Burton Miller

Lifelong Monroe County residents Bob and Charlotte Miller of Sinks Grove was honored as King and Queen of the Union Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Union Farmers Day celebration on June 7, 2014.  The Millers were crowned on the stage in downtown Union at 10 am on Saturday morning before leading the annual Farmers Day parade.

The Millers live near Sinks Grove on land that Bob’s family has farmed for nearly 100 years.  The farm will gain Century Farm status eligibility next year.  Bob’s parents, Ray Clark Miller and Hazel Burdett Miller purchased the farm in 1942 from his mother’s aunt and uncle, William Elmore Irons and Maggie Irons, who had acquired the property in 1915.

Bob and Charlotte grew up within a mile or two of their current home, and both attended school in Sinks Grove before graduating from Union High School.  Bob graduated in 1960 and Charlotte graduated in 1962.  The Millers have been married 51 years and they have two daughters; Robbie who graduated from Union High School in 1982 and Carolyn graduated from Union High School in 1983. Charlotte grew up near Sinks Grove on a dairy farm owned by her parents; Ernest and Hattie Burton.  Along with a full schedule of farm chores, Charlotte has worked for the WVU Extension for ten years and then at the Andrew S. Rowan Home in Sweet Springs before retiring after a 17 year stint with Walmart.  She has served on the Board of the Union Rescue Squad for the past 25 years.

Bob always wanted to be a farmer and says he is just a farmer, “plain and simple”  who wouldn’t be happy doing anything else. His contributions to agriculture and the local farming community also include 30 years of service on the USDA-FSA County Committee, 37 years as Assistant Superintendant of the Sheep Barn at the WV State Fair and received awards as Outstanding Family Farm Competition Sheep Producer from the WV Department of Agriculture in 1982 and he also received the FFA Degree of American Farmer in 1963.

The Miller farm is approximately 160 acres, raising Shorthorn/Angus-cross cattle and sheep.  Bob claims to have the largest herd of blue roan cattle in the state and says part of his enjoyment each calving season is seeing how many blue roan heifers the cows produce. His theory of farming is… “What could you do in life that is better for society than keeping up the land and raising food for people who can’t farm?”

Submitted from:  The Monroe Watchman