Lt. Bret Travis Miller
Born: December 22, 1978 in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin
Died: October 28, 2009 off the coast of Texas
Bret was the youngest of three children born to Rick and Judy (nee Neumann) Miller. Raised in East Troy, Wisconsin he was well known for his academic and athletic achievements. He was a National Honor Society Scholar as well as the school’s all-time leading scorer in basketball, a four-time varsity letter winner in golf and basketball, and graduated with high honors from East Troy High School in 1997. He earned an appointment to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where he graduated with the Class of 2001. He continued to play basketball and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Ocean Engineering. Upon graduation from USNA in 2001, Bret discovered his love of Naval Aviation. He attended primary flight training at VT-28, followed by advanced multi-engine training at VT-31 where he earned his Wings of Gold. Following additional training at the FRS he reported to the War Eagles of VP-16 for his fleet tour. Bret earned qualifications as Patrol Plane Commander, FCF Pilot, Mission Commander and Instructor Pilot, and successfully completed two deployments. Bret was a leader and a professional in every sense; he essentially held every qualification in the T-34. On October 8, 2005, in St. John’s Lutheran Church, Elkhorn, Wisconsin, he married Brianne M. Voss. Lt. Miller was killed on October 28 while on a routine training mission in a T-34C Turbomentor. His remains were recovered 11 miles northeast of Port Aransas. Among Bret’s survivors are his wife, Brianne; son Chase; a son expected in early 2010; his parents, Rick and Judy Miller; his sister, Tara (Gary) Grocholski; and his brother, Chad (Laura) Miller. Bret is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, East Troy.
The Lt. Bret Travis Miller by Freedom Remembered, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.
