Carrollton Leader > News
Faith and a reason: Carrollton mayor cites religion, family as reasons behind success
By Katy Moore, Staff Writer
Carrollton Mayor Becky Miller has come a long way since her days singing backup for the likes of Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Brown and Bonnie Raitt.
A wide range of experiences n from touring with some of pop culture’s most famous songstresses and living under the influence of drugs in the 1970s n have defined her life. The Kentucky-born southern girl and citizen of the world says some of her most meaningful life experiences have been right here in Carrollton, though the path to politics saw Miller treading some rough water.
Her story begins in the 1970s. Miller said she didn’t finish college and that her brother, a songwriter for the Eagles, knew Ronstadt was looking for backup singers. Miller auditioned and set off down the path that would lead her full circle to cocaine addiction and back.
When her marriage to an abusive husband ended in the mid-1970s, Miller had been living in Alaska for five years. She continued to sing and worked for a modeling agency. But, she says her life wasn’t what she wanted it to be.
When she happened to meet a man named Jerry Miller at an Oktoberfest celebration in Alaska, she knew she had to turn her life around or risk losing the kind of life she wanted.
The pair knew each other for a mere three months before getting married and moving down to Carrollton in 1979. And Miller quit using drugs altogether.
“I quit using my drugs cold turkey,” she said. “It was my faith that got me through that time in my life.”
Miller had always been some what interested in civic activism. She had participated in a few political campaigns. Upon moving to Carrollton, she little by little got involved in the city.
In 1998, she ran for council for the first time and won. After serving three terms on the city council, she ran for mayor in 2005 and won, becoming the first woman in the city to hold the position.
These days, Millers life is full with sharing her experiences with middle and high school students in the annual “Shattered Dreams” campaigns, counseling young women and getting involved with local organizations that help promote community and tolerance.
Miller said she grew up the daughter of a military man, which meant much of her life was spent moving from place to place. When she went to college as a freshman at Western Kentucky University, her roommate was an African-American woman. She said the university had accidentally placed the pair together, despite racial prejudices present in the south at that time. Miller, however, said she never thought anything of the fact that her roommate was of a different race since she had spent so much of her life moving around and experiencing different cultures.
“I walked in (to the dorm room) that first day and when my roommate saw me, her eyes got real big,” Miller jokes now. “She was expecting me to freak out, and I didn’t even blink.”
Miller said the university wanted to transfer her roommate, but that the two had become fast friends and refused to be separated.
Since then, Miller says much of her life has been dedicated simply to understanding and loving other people, despite their differences.
Miller’s father was an Army colonel stationed in Holland, so she attended the American School of the Hague.
“Prejudice is taught, and hatred is taught,” Miller said. “But, we would sit around with kids from all over the world, and we all got along just fine.”
Most recently, her experiences have included traveling to Turkey with a local group called the International Interfaith Dialogue. Miller was invited to travel with the group on a tour of the country, which is ruled by an Islamic government and in which most people practice Islam. Miller said that though she is a Christian, she felt no qualms about saying her own prayers to Jesus after the calls to prayer in which the Turks prayed to Allah.
That faith has grounded Miller in some of the darkest days of her life.
“I’ve been through a lot in my life,” she said. “I could not have gotten through the things I’ve been through if it had not been for my faith…(In Turkey) I’d hear the call to prayer, and I would think, ‘I’m not a Muslim, but I need to pray.’ We could all use a little more prayer.”
Contact staff writer Katy Moore at kmoore@acnpapers.com or at 972-628-4087.
A wide range of experiences n from touring with some of pop culture’s most famous songstresses and living under the influence of drugs in the 1970s n have defined her life. The Kentucky-born southern girl and citizen of the world says some of her most meaningful life experiences have been right here in Carrollton, though the path to politics saw Miller treading some rough water.
Her story begins in the 1970s. Miller said she didn’t finish college and that her brother, a songwriter for the Eagles, knew Ronstadt was looking for backup singers. Miller auditioned and set off down the path that would lead her full circle to cocaine addiction and back.
When her marriage to an abusive husband ended in the mid-1970s, Miller had been living in Alaska for five years. She continued to sing and worked for a modeling agency. But, she says her life wasn’t what she wanted it to be.
When she happened to meet a man named Jerry Miller at an Oktoberfest celebration in Alaska, she knew she had to turn her life around or risk losing the kind of life she wanted.
The pair knew each other for a mere three months before getting married and moving down to Carrollton in 1979. And Miller quit using drugs altogether.
“I quit using my drugs cold turkey,” she said. “It was my faith that got me through that time in my life.”
Miller had always been some what interested in civic activism. She had participated in a few political campaigns. Upon moving to Carrollton, she little by little got involved in the city.
In 1998, she ran for council for the first time and won. After serving three terms on the city council, she ran for mayor in 2005 and won, becoming the first woman in the city to hold the position.
These days, Millers life is full with sharing her experiences with middle and high school students in the annual “Shattered Dreams” campaigns, counseling young women and getting involved with local organizations that help promote community and tolerance.
Miller said she grew up the daughter of a military man, which meant much of her life was spent moving from place to place. When she went to college as a freshman at Western Kentucky University, her roommate was an African-American woman. She said the university had accidentally placed the pair together, despite racial prejudices present in the south at that time. Miller, however, said she never thought anything of the fact that her roommate was of a different race since she had spent so much of her life moving around and experiencing different cultures.
“I walked in (to the dorm room) that first day and when my roommate saw me, her eyes got real big,” Miller jokes now. “She was expecting me to freak out, and I didn’t even blink.”
Miller said the university wanted to transfer her roommate, but that the two had become fast friends and refused to be separated.
Since then, Miller says much of her life has been dedicated simply to understanding and loving other people, despite their differences.
Miller’s father was an Army colonel stationed in Holland, so she attended the American School of the Hague.
“Prejudice is taught, and hatred is taught,” Miller said. “But, we would sit around with kids from all over the world, and we all got along just fine.”
Most recently, her experiences have included traveling to Turkey with a local group called the International Interfaith Dialogue. Miller was invited to travel with the group on a tour of the country, which is ruled by an Islamic government and in which most people practice Islam. Miller said that though she is a Christian, she felt no qualms about saying her own prayers to Jesus after the calls to prayer in which the Turks prayed to Allah.
That faith has grounded Miller in some of the darkest days of her life.
“I’ve been through a lot in my life,” she said. “I could not have gotten through the things I’ve been through if it had not been for my faith…(In Turkey) I’d hear the call to prayer, and I would think, ‘I’m not a Muslim, but I need to pray.’ We could all use a little more prayer.”
Contact staff writer Katy Moore at kmoore@acnpapers.com or at 972-628-4087.
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