Family Business 50 p o r t l a n d monthly magazine Navy Week is old home week for the Miller family of Clifton, Maine, 16 miles east of Bangor. Mom and Dad fell in love while in uniform, and both daughters have served with distinction as Naval Officers. Mom is Carolyn L. Miller, a Maine na- tive who convinced her husband Dennis to retire here after both completed careers in the Navy. “I’m from Sherman, Maine,” she says. “Grew up here. “We were electronics technicians,” she says of herself and Dennis–experts in their field. “We met in Guam, and then served tours together in Japan and Florida” be- fore coming back here. “I retired as a senior chief, and Dennis retired as a master chief.” The allure of the sea, the excitement of world travel, and the honor of protecting our country was a frequent subject at din- ner across the decades. Carolyn and Den- nis could tell their daughters Sara and De- nise listened carefully. But could anyone have guessed that both their daughters would become Naval Officers? “You could never know anything like that,” Carolyn says. “They just always liked the lifestyle we had. Always took an inter- est in it.” The Two Sisters Launch First it was Sara who was nominated by Sen. Susan Collins for an appointment to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. “We enlisted,” Carolyn says, so she and Dennis were fascinated to see Sara’s career take off. “Sara majored in English at the Acad- emy,” Carolyn says. “She’s a fabulous writ- er.” After she graduated in 2008 and earned her commission as an Ensign, Sara became a Surface Warfare Officer and a Navy Lieu- akeushome. I grew up in Wales, Maine, surrounded by family. We spent a lot of time camping with my grandparents at Bottle Lake. My aunt owns Fish Bones in Lewiston, and I worked there in high school. WhatattractedyoutotheNavy? Growing up in Maine, I was never far from the water. My father had been in the Army, and when I didn’t have a plan for after high school and the Navy called one day, I went down to learn more. How’sthatplangoingnow? I’m serving my first en- listment with the Helicop- ter Mine Countermeasures Squadron 15 (HM-15), which lasts six years, and then I plan to go to college to study Mor- tuary Science. WillyoucomebacktoMaine? Yes. My husband is there. My family is there. Looking back, I was so lucky to grow up in Maine. It wasn’t until I moved away that I really started to miss it. I grew up just wanting to leave. Kirsten Conner, 20, Navy Aircrewman, USN Meet the Wonder Women of the Miller Family. “My parents’ stories and love for the Navy had an impact on my decision to apply for a ROTC scholarship, but that career path was certainly never pushed onto me.” –LT Denise Miller The Miller family from left.Master Chief Dennis Miller; Lieutenant Sara Everett; Lieutenant Denise Miller; and Senior Chief Carolyn Miller. tenant, serving in combatants like those made at Bath Iron Works on the shores of the Kennebec River–a dream that was a natural as it was extraordinary. “Her hus- band, a fellow Naval Academy grad, is a Marine Corps helicopter pilot,” Carolyn says. “They’re currently stationed in North Carolina. He flies the CH-53,” the mas- sive helicopter that’s the largest in the Fleet. Talk about good vibrations. Denise’s Sense of Snow Now it was Denise’s turn. “My sister’s last ship was the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan,” Denise says. “I majored in Me- chanical Engineering at Boston University.” When she felt a need for speed after ROTC