Jonathan Miller Named Moorestown Citizen of the Year

Moorestown, NJ -- Jonathan Miller has been named as the Moorestown Citizen of the Year, the Moorestown Service Clubs announced Tuesday morning.

He will be honored during a dinner at the Moorestown Community House on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, 6 p.m. Tickets are $55 and can be purchased at the Community House or The First Presbyterian Church of Moorestown.

He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and was raised in a home of faith where worship was one constant in the home.

He moved to Wilmington, Delaware, at the age of 12. He graduated from Wilmington Friends School and Trinity College in Connecticut, where he majored in history.

He was commissioned in the U.S. Marine Corps and served as a Communications Officer from 1971–74, with the intention of someday working for the FBI.

He married his wife Karin in 1972.

His life direction shifted after a close friend and fellow Marine was killed in Vietnam.

He said he felt God’s healing comfort, and everything changed for him.

He joined the Princeton Theological Seminary with the intent to pursue the ministry. He attended the Seminary from 1974–77.

He completed his Doctor of Ministry degree at Princeton in 1993.

From seminary, he and Karin traveled to Red Bank, where he served as a youth pastor at the First Presbyterian Church for four years.

They then moved to the St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church in Laurel Springs, where they lived from 1981-86.

From 1986-94, he served as pastor at the Manoa Presbyterian Church in Havertown, PA.

His family came to Moorestown to join The First Presbyterian Church (FPC) in 1994.

During his time in Moorestown he has:

• Led nine mission trips: 2 to Kenya, 2 to Haiti, 2 to Mexico, and 3 to New Orleans/Mississippi after Katrina. They helped build churches and school rooms, restore homes, and teach children and adults.

• Initiated the Seminary Internship Program with Princeton Theological Seminary, training and encourages those who would lead the church of tomorrow.

• Led FPC in a partnership with Urban Promise, which invests in the youth of Camden, for over 20 years.

• Been the head of the Moorestown Ministerium for over half of his tenure in Moorestown.

• Helped lead 20 Couples Retreats.

• Faithfully attended and supported every Memorial Day service at the Memorial Field for 21 years as a former Marine, many times contributing with prayers of invocation and benediction.

• Opened the Presbyterian Church to the community: accommodating the MTPS buses on the parking lot, car washes for athletic teams, funerals for high school students tragically deceased and many local meetings.

• Regularly participated in the Rotary Run, always coming in first in his category: Presbyterian ministers over 40.

He will retire in May.

“It’s been a remarkable privilege to work with so many outstanding men and women within the town,” Miller said.

He added he is grateful for meaningful friendships shared with the school board, mayors and town councils, and especially the ministerium which represents the faith communities within our town.

“I have never been a part of a clergy group that has offered more help and encouragement to its colleagues and community,” he said.

Jonathan and Karin Miller have two daughters.

Their daughter Katie and Tony Sundermeier have two children, Jonny, 13, and Luke, 7, and live in Atlanta, GA.

Their daughter Sarah and Jeremy Rotter have two children, Kari, 6, and Josh, 4,, and live in Mt. Laurel.

Karin retired last year as Admissions Director after 20 years at the Moorestown Friends School, where Jonathan was known as Mrs. Miller’s husband.

Miller said he is always thankful for God’s grace and the caring and redemptive community called Moorestown.

The Citizen of the Year Award is given annually to “a Moorestown resident who has, through varied voluntary community service activities, significantly contributed to the quality of life of both the community and its citizens.”

The Moorestown Service Clubs Council, which was established in 1954 and is celebrating its 62nd anniversary, consists of the Rotary Lunch and Breakfast Clubs, The Lions Club and the Y Service Club.

All four clubs participate in various community service projects within the town and encourage others to do the same.