Anna M. Miller

Anna M. (Nofziger) Miller, 90, of Indianapolis, died May 20, 2024, of complications from Alzheimer’s disease.

She was born in Pettisville, Ohio, in 1933 to Ralph and Beulah (Nafziger) Nofziger. She graduated from Pettisville High School in 1951 and earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Goshen College in 1955. A lifelong learner, Anna earned her master’s degree in community health nursing from Indiana University in 1980 and her Ph.D in health policy from IU in 1994. 

She worked as a nurse from 1955-1967 in Elkhart, Ind.; Wauseon and Dayton, Ohio; and Muskegon, Mich. She then became a nursing educator, serving as a hospital nursing instructor in Springfield, Ill., 1968-73; a lecturer at the IU School of Nursing, 1973-78; an assistant professor at DePauw University, 1980-86; a consultant and guest lecturer at Indiana Wesleyan, 1990-94; and an assistant professor at Ball State University, 1986-97. In 1986, she co-authored the comprehensive nursing textbook Skills for Professional Nursing Practice: Communication, Physical Appraisal, and Clinical Nursing Techniques.

Turning her focus to research in 1996, Anna was coordinator of the CDC’s Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection program at the Indiana State Department of Health, 1996-97; project director of the “Quality of Life for Survivors of Ovarian Germ Cell Cancer” project at the IU Simon Cancer Center and a research scientist at the IU School of Nursing, 1998-2007; coordinator of the Indiana Comprehensive Cancer Control Program at the Department of Health, 2001-07; cancer control director of the American Cancer Society, Great Lakes Division, 2002-07; and coordinator of the end of life initiative at the Simon Cancer Center, 2007-10. From 1980-2008, she co-authored 17 refereed publications, led or co-led eight research projects, and presented or co-presented at 26 conferences and workshops.

Her many awards and honors included the Indiana Cancer Consortium’s inaugural Anna M. Miller Comprehensive Cancer Control Award for Outstanding Contribution to Cancer Control in 2008 and the Distinguished Service to Public Health Award from the Indiana Public Health Association in 2005. She also won first place and best of show for an original quilt at the 2001 Indiana State Fair and baked amazing fruit pies.

Anna was an active member of Meridian Street United Methodist Church and, in 2000, as an example of her unconditional love and acceptance, launched and chaired its Developmental Ministries/Special Needs task force to provide a safe and engaging environment for children with special needs so their parents could participate fully in worship services. 

She was preceded in death by her brother Bill (Lois Histand) and sister Marilyn (Russell Siegel). She is survived by her husband of 67 years, James N. Miller of Indianapolis; her brother Lowell (Lucie Schrock) of Wadsworth, Ohio; sons Doug (Rose McLeish) of Indianapolis and Stan (Barb Maier) of Muskegon, Mich.; numerous nieces and nephews, three grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be on Saturday, June 1, from 10 a.m. to noon at Flanner Buchanan, 1305 Broad Ripple Ave., Indianapolis. Funeral services will be Sunday, June 2, at 2:30 p.m. at Meridian Street United Methodist Church, 5500 Meridian St., Indianapolis. Burial services will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations to the American Cancer Society, the Alzheimer’s Association, or Meridian Street United Methodist Church would honor her memory.