Ryan G Miller (yes, only a G for a middle name; when asked what he would have wanted it to be if it was a name, he said, "Garrett") was born in the State of Washington. He reminisced about the day he moved to Wrangell as the day Mt. St. Helen's blew; May 18, 1980. Ryan quickly made friends in the community who he started running the Stikine River with. Terry Buness of Buness Brothers took Ryan under his wing teaching him all there was to know about fixing outboard motors. Ryan entered into a hobby of stripping down small boats and rebuilding that he would have continued if time allowed. Small boats and big motors; Wrangell Style!
When Ryan began dating Jenn Warfel (Miller-Yancey), Frank Warfel, Sr. and Frank Warfel, Jr. got him involved with the family commercial fishing business, where he thrived, found his calling, and great success. Over many years, he crewed and captained the F/V MRS and F/V Iver P. Nore, married Jenn, and they raised their own growing family, spending each summer commercial Dungeness Crabbing and Salmon Seining. He continued to run the Stikine River, enjoying time at the family cabin on Farm Island.
Ryan did not like being away from Jenn and their three children; Calleigh, Garrett, and Trevor. So after school let out where Jenn was a teacher and later the kids went to elementary school, Ryan would pack Jenn and the kids up to move onto the boat for three months of amazing adventures and memory making to last a lifetime. He loved his life as a thriving young year-round commercial fisherman of all the things; halibut, shrimp, tanner crab, dungeness crab, brown crab, salmon, longlining for rockfish, you name it! He loved sport fishing just the same.
You wouldn't find anyone as community oriented as Ryan either. He was all about his family, friends, and his community, spreading good cheer wherever he went, chatting it up with anyone he could, and volunteering his time and talent, especially in Little League Baseball where after his passing the Board dedicated the new batting cage in his name. Ryan was notorious for taking two hours just to walk through town and never being on time anywhere due to lending a helping hand or taking time to talk to someone. He was also noted for his impeccable ability to fix nearly everything with a coat hanger/wire and duct tape. This is no joke!
In Ryan's spare time, he was an avid deer hunter who has one deer listed in Boone and Crockett thanks to the work of his son Garrett and teacher Mr. Davies that submitted his award-winning antlers after his passing. During the winter, he loved the days he could get away and snowmobile the island mountains, as well as take his family sledding, four wheeling, and hanging out with the other young families at the track or Pat's Lake. He was a great cook, talented artist, and caring human. There was not one "town day" that Jenn didn't get a coffee delivered to her classroom, or you didn't see Ryan working or running errands with his kids in tow, sneaking in junk food runs to CE Bradley's and making trips to the playground, ball field, swim lessons, or some school function.
Ryan's life was lost on the afternoon of October 14, 2005 at the age of 38 during a banner shrimp season, when the F/V MRS capsized and he did not survive. Ryan died doing what he loved. Life was never the same, but the family moved forward as he would have wanted it to be, surrounded by family, friends, and the amazing community of Wrangell.
Ryan's most common saying was "No Problem!", and he would repeat this frequently to his mother-in-law Pat Warfel, when she was worried; his favorite dock activity was playing jokes back and forth with his good friend, Bear Jenkins. That's a whole other story. Ryan will be in our hearts and on our minds forever as a wonderful friend, son, and brother, amazing husband, incredible father, and outstanding community member. Always Remembered, Forever Loved. "One Great Man"
Submitted by Wife, Jenn Warfel Miller-Yancey
When Ryan began dating Jenn Warfel (Miller-Yancey), Frank Warfel, Sr. and Frank Warfel, Jr. got him involved with the family commercial fishing business, where he thrived, found his calling, and great success. Over many years, he crewed and captained the F/V MRS and F/V Iver P. Nore, married Jenn, and they raised their own growing family, spending each summer commercial Dungeness Crabbing and Salmon Seining. He continued to run the Stikine River, enjoying time at the family cabin on Farm Island.
Ryan did not like being away from Jenn and their three children; Calleigh, Garrett, and Trevor. So after school let out where Jenn was a teacher and later the kids went to elementary school, Ryan would pack Jenn and the kids up to move onto the boat for three months of amazing adventures and memory making to last a lifetime. He loved his life as a thriving young year-round commercial fisherman of all the things; halibut, shrimp, tanner crab, dungeness crab, brown crab, salmon, longlining for rockfish, you name it! He loved sport fishing just the same.
You wouldn't find anyone as community oriented as Ryan either. He was all about his family, friends, and his community, spreading good cheer wherever he went, chatting it up with anyone he could, and volunteering his time and talent, especially in Little League Baseball where after his passing the Board dedicated the new batting cage in his name. Ryan was notorious for taking two hours just to walk through town and never being on time anywhere due to lending a helping hand or taking time to talk to someone. He was also noted for his impeccable ability to fix nearly everything with a coat hanger/wire and duct tape. This is no joke!
In Ryan's spare time, he was an avid deer hunter who has one deer listed in Boone and Crockett thanks to the work of his son Garrett and teacher Mr. Davies that submitted his award-winning antlers after his passing. During the winter, he loved the days he could get away and snowmobile the island mountains, as well as take his family sledding, four wheeling, and hanging out with the other young families at the track or Pat's Lake. He was a great cook, talented artist, and caring human. There was not one "town day" that Jenn didn't get a coffee delivered to her classroom, or you didn't see Ryan working or running errands with his kids in tow, sneaking in junk food runs to CE Bradley's and making trips to the playground, ball field, swim lessons, or some school function.
Ryan's life was lost on the afternoon of October 14, 2005 at the age of 38 during a banner shrimp season, when the F/V MRS capsized and he did not survive. Ryan died doing what he loved. Life was never the same, but the family moved forward as he would have wanted it to be, surrounded by family, friends, and the amazing community of Wrangell.
Ryan's most common saying was "No Problem!", and he would repeat this frequently to his mother-in-law Pat Warfel, when she was worried; his favorite dock activity was playing jokes back and forth with his good friend, Bear Jenkins. That's a whole other story. Ryan will be in our hearts and on our minds forever as a wonderful friend, son, and brother, amazing husband, incredible father, and outstanding community member. Always Remembered, Forever Loved. "One Great Man"
Submitted by Wife, Jenn Warfel Miller-Yancey
Wrangell Mourns Fisherman: Ryan Miller, 10/14/05
https://www.akfatal.net/Miller%2010-14-05.htm
Here is a link to the F/V MRS on a historic fishing boat site
https://historicfishing.smugmug.com/History/Sieners2/i-tmVGZbC
Sunset Gardens Cemetary
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/256892335/ryan-g.-miller
Alaska Shipwrecks 2005
https://alaskashipwreck.com/alaska-fisheries-losses-1972-2009/alaska-commercial-fishing-losses-of-2005/
