Losing Linda
Keith Miller gives to dementia research at OMRF in hopes it will help others avoid his wife's fate
It started with a push reel lawnmower.
In 1946, at the age of 6, Keith Miller launched his grass-cutting business in the small Illinois town of Marshall. The pint-sized mogul's client list grew quickly, and he soon found himself mowing 23 lawns a week. Almost 80 years later, one of those patches of grass still stands out: that of the Mitchell family.
It was while mowing the lawn at 528 North 8th Street that he first met Linda Mitchell. She was 3 years old then.
June 12, 2025, marked Linda and Keith's 60th wedding anniversary. His wife, Keith says, now 85, "is everything good, kind and bright." He's sitting in the living room of the Norman, Oklahoma, home the couple purchased in 1975 to raise their two children. The space overflows with momentos of their life together: photos, books, the piano Linda played.
But Linda isn't there. She now lives in a memory care facility four miles away.
"I walk around the house, and everything in here" – he gestures to the art on the walls, the furnishings, the oriental rug that covers the floor – "Linda did." He choked up, then takes a deep breath and exhales. "It's hard."
In the early years, Keith and Linda's paths crossed occasionally, but it never amounted to much until a trip home during his senior year of college. A chance conversation led to a coffee date, and Keith was soon using leave during officers' training school in San Antonio to visit Linda, who was completing nursing school in Indiana.
Once married, Keith's Air Force assignment brought them to a Montana community with no available nursing positions, so Linda channeled her love for children into creating a kindergarten program for families on base. This, Keith says, was followed by "a potpourri" of public health and bedside nursing work in every community where they landed.
After Keith completed his military service and earned a master's degree at the University of Oklahoma, he began a long career in engineering and the energy business. Following a brief detour to Dallas, the couple returned to their beloved Norman for good.
Over the years, the Millers made the most of their time. That meant world travel, professional achievements, a cherished family and supporting –through service and giving – organizations whose values aligned with their own.
"We give to entities we feel will ultimately help mankind and save our planet," says Keith. Alongside many other causes – animal welfare, children, environmental conservation – they began supporting medical research at OMRF more than a decade ago.
Back then, the couple thought of the many diseases studied in OMRF's labs. But the gift would become far more personal when Linda began treatment for dementia-related symptoms in 2019 at the age of 76. By 2023, she required more care than Keith and in-home providers could offer, so she moved to a specialized facility for people living with dementia.
"You see this beautiful person who cared for others her whole life, who was so intelligent, so helpful," Keith says. "Oftentimes, she doesn't know who she is." It has been agonizing to watch the woman he loves vanish. "I've lost her once, and I'm going to lose her again."
Now, Keith makes the 10-minute drive each day to help Linda eat lunch. She can no longer walk or feed herself, and she hasn't carried on a conversation for a while now. Still, Keith says, "she smiles at me. Almost every day I get at least one smile." He pulls a handkerchief from his back pocket to dab his eyes. "I think maybe she knows who I am."
Keith takes his time talking about Linda. He searches for the right words to describe a woman who shared his entire life. Until she couldn't.
"When she was still Linda, she knew what we were giving to and she was gratified that we could help," he says. In the past two years, Keith has dug into reading about OMRF's dementia research, eventually reaching out to tour labs and meet scientists trying to make a difference for others facing the same devastating diagnosis.
Keith knows that medical research takes time. None of the studies conducted at OMRF will save his wife. But working today to benefit future generations is something he understands. And so did Linda.
"When she started at Norman Regional Hospital, she wrote training material," he says. A half-century later, during a brief hospital stay after Linda entered memory care, "the nurse helping her said it was still being used."
Uncovering the Mind's Mysteries
Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, affects more than 6 million Americans, largely women over 65. While the disease is more prevalent in women, it more often leads to early death in men. OMRF's Dr. Sarah Ocañas studies why sex differences may have an impact on brain diseases.
"Our goal is to better understand the biology and the mechanisms of Alzheimer's, particularly in women, so that eventually physicians can provide a more personalized treatment approach before symptoms manifest," she says.
Meanwhile, OMRF's Dr. Mike Beckstead studies how overactive cells controlling dopamine, a chemical that helps with movement and signaling rewards, often precede an Alzheimer's diagnosis. This could provide the possibility for testing "long before the onset of symptoms," he says. Ultimately, he hopes the work will provide a potential target for preventing the disease altogether.
Support dementia research at OMRF
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