Remembered for his fierce love of family and unwavering faith
November 6, 1942 – December 9, 2025
Alfred “Fred” Miller III passed away on Dec. 9, 2025, at the age of 83.
Fred was born and raised in Jacksonville. He attended Robert E. Lee High School, where he met Mandy Harby, the love of his life. He graduated in 1960 and married Mandy five years later.
Fred left Jacksonville to attend the University of the South. He majored in English, lettered in swimming, became a member of Phi Delta Theta and was a volunteer firefighter. Fred maintained and cherished friendships made in these youthful years of life, some of them staying strong up until his final days. Doug Milne was a lifelong friend of Fred’s and said the impact Fred had on him and others will not be forgotten.
“I have lost a great friend of more than 70 years, but the effect he had on me and many others won’t be lost,” said Doug. “He was a man of many talents with intelligence, wit, ambition, athletic skill and old fashioned thoughtfulness. He never took himself too seriously and was a classic example of a follower of the Golden Rule, a person of rare quality who made things better just by being himself.”
After college, Fred applied his entrepreneurial spirit to every venture he pursued, from his time with Miller Press, his family’s printing business, to the advertising and marketing firm of which he was a founding partner, to his residential real estate company, the Fred Miller Group.
A successful and thriving businessman, Fred was equally devoted to his community, volunteering with several organizations, including the 200 Club of Jacksonville, The Salvation Army of Northeast Florida, NEFAR, Meninak, Evergreen Cemetery Association, Evergreen Funeral Home, St. Mark’s Episcopal Day School, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, YMCA and Timuquana Country Club, among others. He was also a founding member of the local chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Wholly devoted to his faith, Fred worked with Eastern European Seminary – a calling he accepted in 1989 – during which he smuggled Bibles and Christian literature behind the Iron Curtain and participated in clandestine prayer groups. He was a steadfast member of Ortega’s St. Mark’s Episcopal Church.
Fred was an avid outdoorsman, finding happiness in nature and in time spent camping, fishing, hunting, or driving along the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Fred loved fiercely, finding ceaseless joy in time spent with those he cherished, especially his wife, children, and grandchildren. His wife, Carol, reflected on their time together as she recalled their 30th anniversary, celebrated last March.
“There was no big event, just a quiet visit with him at Riverside Post Acute and a chat about how it didn’t seem possible that 30 years could fly by so quickly,” Carol said. “The thing is that 30 years isn’t nearly long enough. But we managed to squeeze a lot into these past three decades. We loved doing life together: spending time with family and friends, going to Sunday school and church, traveling to the mountains of WNC, back and forth to the beach constantly, an amazing trip to the British Isles. Just spending as much time together as we possibly could. We counted every day as a blessing, and we were always so thankful to be together.”
His lifelong love, Mary Ann Harby (Mandy), predeceased Fred, passing on Dec. 9, 1985. He is survived by his loving wife of 30 years, Carol Watson Miller; his sons Alfred Miller IV (Ted and Mary Claire), Nathan Earl Miller (Kat) and Matthew Davidson Miller (Leah); seven grandchildren: Alfred V (Quinn), Mary Elizabeth (Mandy), Evelyn Elizabeth (Evelyn), Ann Genevra (Annie), Hannah Louise (Hannah), Jackson Earl (Jackson) and Thaddeus Hardy (Thad); his sister, Judith Frame (Judi) and her husband, Gene, of Hendersonville, North Carolina; six nieces and nephews; and 13 great-nieces and nephews.
