Janet Youngren Miller

died June 29, 2007 in her sleep at home on Bainbridge Island following a year long struggle with kidney cancer.Janet was born to Wilbert and Evelyn Youngren in Seattle, Washington on February 21, 1943. A 1961 graduate of Queen Anne High School, she received her B.A. from Seattle Pacific University. In 1965 she married Delbert Miller, a Queen Anne High classmate, and moved to New Haven, Connecticut where she worked for the Yale Alumni Association and taught high school English putting Del through law school. She and Del returned to Seattle and Queen Anne in 1968 where they lived until moving to Bainbridge Island in 1981.In addition to nurturing her husband and two children, Janet was deeply devoted to her extended family including her grandmother, her mother and father, her four brothers and sisters, her nieces and nephews, their children, her friends and the children of her friends, and, through her work, the children of many whom she did not know.Janet obtained a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Washington and made a professional commitment to finding ways to prevent, rather than merely respond to, child abuse. As unpaid citizen lobbyists in 1979, Janet and Bonnie Riach led the effort to create the Washington Council for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (WCPCAN). In 1982 the Washington Legislature approved the creation of WCPCAN funded by a $5 surcharge on marriage licenses to support child abuse prevention and family strengthening programs. In 1992 she received from Governor Booth Gardner an Award "For her efforts in the creation of the Council". In 1999 Janet received an award from the Children's Alliance as an "Outstanding Advocate for Children" for her work in preventing child abuse and neglect and for establishing WCPCAN and the Children's Trust Fund legislation". In 2002, Janet received a special award from Governor Gary Locke on the 20th anniversary of the creation of WCPCAN.In 1987, Janet founded Children's Trust Foundation, a charity that raises private donations that also funds family support and parent education programs throughout the state. In 2007, "in honor of Janet's incredible work on behalf of Washington's children and families, Children's Trust Foundation created The Janet Miller Award for Excellence. "The award is given annually to a member of the family support community who has demonstrated consistently high levels of professionalism and dedication." To better measure the effectiveness of child abuse prevention and family support programs, Janet returned to the UW and obtained a Ph.D. in Social Welfare in 1989. She founded Janet Miller Evaluation Services which designed instruments for providing that service to the City of Seattle and other service and grant making agencies. Her evaluation work and measurement techniques have become models in the field: http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/eval/issue4/eval1.html."Spare time" was not in Janet's vocabulary. She was always engaged in some activity or project including quilting (full sized quilts, wall hangings, quilted pillows), music (she played the violin, piano, guitar, recorder, zither, harmonica), yoga, singing, writing, pets, gourmet cooking, knitting, photography or gardening. She excelled at everything she did (except dog obedience training).Janet was an active and athletic woman who enjoyed hiking, camping, squash (Ladies B State Champion one year!) and tennis and was even willing to learn to love to sail. She was a first rate first-mate, line handler, helmsperson, cook and meteorologist ("time to reef!") on the annual summer cruises that she and Del took on their boat in the waters of Puget Sound, British Columbia, Alaska, Scotland and Italy. She loved the secluded anchorages, the proximity to and beauty of nature, fishing and getting out in her kayak.Janet loved to travel the world and to connect with people from all walks of life. In 1984 she was a member of the Washington Business, Industrial & Community Leaders Goodwill Delegation to the Soviet Union and the Peoples Republic of China led by Secretary of State Ralph Munro.Her most recent venture, cut short by cancer, was the creation of Troubadour Video Productions, launched to draw out and record personal stories through her well developed interviewing skills and the production of videos. Her love and understanding of people, combined with her computer and artistic skills made her a highly prized personal historian.Janet is survived by Del, her husband of 42 years, daughter Cameron Gard, recently of Boston, now Seattle, son Christopher Miller, of Tumwater, three grandchildren, sisters Myrna Capp of Seattle and Meredith Flaming of Camas; brothers, Jim Youngren of Orcas Island and Larry Youngren of Issaquah; her mother, Evelyn Youngren of Bainbridge Island; numerous nieces and nephews and many friends. In the words of a niece, "Janet spent her entire lifetime pouring love into the world." She will be greatly missed, but her impressive contributions to the lives of others remain.A memorial service will be held on Thursday, July 12, at 1:00 p.m. at Grace Episcopal Church, 8595 NE Day Road , Bainbridge Island, WA. (map) (The 11:25a.m. ferry from Seattle is suggested.)In lieu of flowers, remembrances to honor and continue her life's work may be sent to the charity that she founded: Children's Trust Foundation; 603 Stewart Ave, Suite 906; Seattle, WA 98101.Arrangements by Cook Family Funeral Home.