Beatrice Miller (nee Leshinsky) died on Feb. 8. She was 95.
Born in Porosville, Poland, Miller was orphaned at the age of six. Two years later, she immigrated to the United States and was adopted by her aunt and uncle, Leah and Hertzel Leshinsky.
Miller owned and operated Miller Scrap Metal and Paper Recycling in South Milwaukee with her husband of 51 years, Bernard Miller.
In the 1940s, Miller’s father-in-law, who was an observant Jew, was diagnosed with tuberculosis. At the time, Milwaukee did not have a rehabilitation facility where he could be served kosher meals, so Miller sought to correct this.
In 1945, she became one of the founders and (later) the second president of the Milwaukee Jewish Convalescent Center at 51st and Silver Spring.
Known as a savvy and hard-working businesswoman, Miller was appointed to the Wisconsin Commission on the Status of Women by Governor Warren Knowles in 1967.
Though she lacked a formal education (she left school when she was 15 to begin working), she “had an astuteness in terms of dealing with people and a lot of common sense,” said her daughter, Patti (Jordan) Weigler of Milwaukee. “She certainly made her mark on the community.”
On her 80th birthday, Miller established the Beatrice Miller Beauty Shop Fund at the Jewish Home and Care Center to help residents pay for barber and beauty services.
Miller is further survived by her daughter, Audrey Laufman of Milwaukee; sons Joel (Linda) Miller of Potomac, Md., and Monte (Miriam) Miller of Great Neck, N.Y.; 13 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Funeral arrangements were handled by Jewish Community Funeral Home. Rabbi Jacob Herber officiated and Rabbi Michel Twerski spoke at services at Congregation Beth Israel on Feb. 10. Burial was at Anshai Lebowitz Cemetery.
The family appreciates memorial contributions to the Beatrice Miller Beauty Shop Fund at the Jewish Home and Care Center.
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