Psychologist who believed horses could be therapeautic
When Richard Miller was in second grade, the ceiling of his classroom collapsed, sending him fleeing home to the safety of his mother’s arms.
“He just skedaddled out of there, across the street to his home, where his mother comforted him and rocked him on a porch swing. Then she took him by the hand and led him back to the school,” said Mr. Miller’s daughter-in-law, Jane Miller.
That early childhood trauma stayed with the young “Dickie” Miller, even shaping much of his future life as an esteemed clinical psychologist.
“He often said that when you’re a psychologist, you’re that person that’s beside someone and leading them back to the source of their trauma and how critically important that is,” said Ms. Miller, of Avalon.
Mr. Miller, 88, died of pneumonia Monday at his home in Forward, Butler County.
In addition to his work as a psychologist, he was active with Riding for the Handicapped of Western Pennsylvania, a nonprofit that provides equine-assisted therapy for disabled children and adults.
Mr. Miller grew up in Coraopolis and graduated from Moon High School in 1948. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Union County, in 1953 and went on to graduate with a master’s and a doctorate degree in psychology from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
In August 1950, Mr. Miller married Lois Weaver. He had had a crush on her since eighth grade, and family members recalled stories that Mr. Miller told about tossing pennies at his beloved during school dances to get her attention.
His father had a natural way of disarming people and gaining their confidence, said his son, Rick Miller, of Avalon.
“He was profoundly good. I don’t think he even realized how good he was,” said the younger Mr. Miller, who followed in his father’s footsteps and became a psychologist.
The two often went to professional conferences together, said Rick Miller, who once found his father deep in conversation with a shoeshine vendor in Washington, D.C.
“People could really open up to him,” he said. “He was able to just engage this man and have a 30-minute conversation about his life.”
Her father-in-law genuinely cared for people and felt a responsibility to help people where he could, Ms. Miller said.
“His philosophy was that every life has a value,” she said.
“Dad was trained and familiar with a variety of clinical approaches. Yet his skill was in his ability to attend to each individual honestly and with compassion,” his son said.
Mr. Miller started his career in 1957 at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Highland Park, where he worked until 1960, when he and colleague Robert Romano opened a partnership in Oakland.
By 1969, Mr. Miller embarked on a private practice with offices in Oakland and Mars. He also worked as an adjunct professor of psychology at the University of Pittsburgh for 10 years, mostly in the 1970s.
Always sensitive to the changing needs of his patients, Mr. Miller often spoke at seminars about job-related stress and how to cope with the loss of a job.
He also worked with school districts and in the mental health/mental retardation departments of several counties in the region.
In 2000, he was recognized with the Legacy Award from the Greater Pittsburgh Psychological Association.
Mr. Miller continued seeing patients until 2016, when he could no longer work due to injuries suffered in a car accident.
Mr. Miller had a passion for horses, and in 1976, he and his wife bought a 134year-old farm where they raised Arabian horses.
“He always used to say that you could learn a lot from horses, that they are very similar to people in a lot of ways,” his daughterin-law said.
In 1999, he joined the board of directors for Riding for the Handicapped of Western Pennsylvania. His wife had volunteered with the organization since its inception in 1979, and Mr. Miller also became a valued member, said the group’s director, T.M. Abbott.
“He did a lot of fundraising for us,” Ms. Abbott said. “He understood what a horse could do for a person and he put 100 percent into it. He was always there and he believed in the program. He was just a very generous and good man.”
Retired counselor David Russell of Swissvale met Mr. Miller in the 1970s when a friend recommended Mr. Miller as a trustworthy and skilled therapist. Their connection was instant, Mr. Russell recalled.
“Dick was the therapist’s therapist,” he said. “There were many people in the therapy profession who went to see Dick for counseling and I was one of them.”
The two eventually became colleagues and friends and practiced group therapy techniques together, Mr. Russell said.
“Dick was just a wonderful teacher,” he remembered. “He was very modest and Dick was a great listener. I learned so much from him — he was very available as a friend and as a teacher.”
His friend had a “quick, infectious laugh” and shared his emotions readily and honestly, Mr. Russell said.
“He was just a solid friend and professional,” he said. “He was the kind of person who seemed to always be in balance.”
In addition to his wife and son, Mr. Miller is survived by another son, Jeff Miller of Baden; a brother, John Miller of Moon; five grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.
A memorial service is planned from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday with the funeral immediately following at Copeland Funeral Home, 981 Brodhead Road in Moon.
Contributions in Mr. Miller’s memory may be made to Riding for the Handicapped of Western PA Inc., P.O. Box 23, Allison Park, PA 15101 or to the Richard and Lois Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation, Five PPG Place, Suite 250, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.