Luke Hunter Miller, beloved son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend to all, died on January 10, 2019 at his grandparents’ home in Centennial, Colorado from complications due to epilepsy. He was spending the night there with his father and was planning to travel to Gunnison, Colorado the next day to resume college at Western Colorado University.

Luke was born on May 24, 1998 in Paducah, Kentucky. At the age of 18 months, he and his parents, Kelly and Mark, moved to Springfield, Missouri. Luke attended preschool at Kingsway Methodist Church. His childhood was filled with Thomas the Train, plastic sword and light sabre battles, and youth sports.

He attended elementary school at Wilder, middle school at Pershing and graduated from Glendale High School in 2017. Except for a handful of A-minuses, Luke’s high school academic record was unblemished. Luke was a scholar who loved to learn, especially about films and literature. He loved the movies of Wes Anderson, Terrence Malick and, most of all, Paul Thomas Anderson whom Luke called the greatest living director. His favorite actor was Daniel Day Lewis and he was particularly fond of the actor’s performances in “There Will Be Blood” and “Phantom Thread.”

Besides being a scholar, Luke was a fantastic distance runner. He competed at the Missouri State Cross Country meet as a freshman, injuries kept him from returning to the state meet until his senior year, but he made the most of it finishing sixth in Class 4. On the track, Luke competed at the state meet in the 1600 meters as a junior, but it was his senior year when he truly excelled taking third place in both the 1600 meters and the 3200 meters.

Luke began his college life in the fall of 2017 at Western Colorado University. He was studying communication with an emphasis in film studies. He was also a cross country and track athlete at Western. As a true freshman, he was part of the Mountaineer squad that finished in fourth place at the NCAA Division II National Championship Cross Country meet. His athletic and academic performances during his freshman year earned him Academic All-America honors for NCAA Division II Cross Country.

Luke was diagnosed with epilepsy in the summer of 2018, but he was determined to overcome his illness, return to college and resume his running career.

Luke is survived by his parents, Kelly and Mark, a younger brother, Ethan, his paternal grandparents, Richard and Lee Miller, and his maternal grandmother, Mary Anne Shackleford, along with countless uncles, aunts, cousins and friends. He was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Jack Shackleford.

Luke’s family would like to ask those who knew and loved him to cherish his memory forever.

A visitation for Luke will be held at Greenlawn East Funeral Home in Springfield on Wednesday, January 16, from 5-8 p.m. A celebration of his life will be held at the Venues Church on East Battlefield at noon on Thursday. The family asks that attendees to the celebration of life wear Western Colorado University colors Crimson and Slate.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Luke’s name to either the Glendale Cross Country team or to the Western Colorado University Cross Country/Track and Field Fund.
To make a gift to Western, donations can be made online at https://westernup.org/ by selecting “Other Funds” and entering Cross Country/Track & Field in the comment box. Please also note that the gift is in memory of Luke Miller. If you prefer to make a donation by check, please make checks payable to “WCU Foundation” with “In Memory of Luke Miller – Cross Country/Track & Field” in the memo line.
Address:
Western Colorado University Foundation
In memory of Luke Miller
909 East Escalante Drive
Gunnison, CO 81230

To make a gift to Glendale Cross Country, please make checks payable to “Glendale Cross Country” and write “In memory of Luke Miller” in the memo line. Mail checks to:

Glendale High School Cross Country
Care of: Kenneth Bowling
2727 South Ingram Mill Road
Springfield, Mo 65804