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Damon C. Miller dies at 71
Retired from Navy Reserve as commander
Damon C. Miller
Damon Craddock Miller died Feb. 10 of prostate cancer at George Washington University Hospital, according to his close friend Richard Mumford. He was 71 and died of prostate cancer.
Miller was born on Jan. 26, 1947 in Summit, N.J., attended elementary school in Oakville, Ontario, and graduated as valedictorian from the Bolles School in Jacksonville, Fla.
He graduated from Princeton University in 1968 with an A.B. cum laude in politics and completed Naval Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I., the same year. Miller served on active duty until 1972 on the USS Northampton and USS Hawkins. He retired from the Naval Reserve in 1991 with the rank of Commander, U.S. Navy Reserve.
Miller graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1975 with honors. He had a 32-year career as a maritime lawyer, first with Rawle and Henderson in Philadelphia from 1975-1984, then with the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, from which he retired as Senior Admiralty Counsel in 2007.
An arts lover his whole life, Miller sang with the Mendelssohn Club in Philadelphia, where he performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy and Riccardo Muti, and with the Oratorio Society of Washington, performing with the National Symphony Orchestra under Mstislav Rostropovich. He also sang in two choirs at Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church in Bethesda, Md.
Miller, who was gay, was active in the Chrysalis Arts and Culture Group of Washington, a gay men’s organization that visits museums, historic homes and other attractions. He hiked frequently with Adventuring, an LGBT outdoors group, and regularly led their hikes at the National Arboretum, Great Falls and Rock Creek Park. In retirement, he volunteered as a teacher of English as a second language in Bethesda. He loved to travel, both nationally and internationally, and kept track of the states he had visited, reaching 49 when he went to Alaska several summers ago; only Hawaii eluded his quest for a complete tally.
Miller is survived by his brother, Richard W. Miller, and sister-in-law, Rosalia G-H. Miller, of Washington; and his best friend and companion, Richard Mumford of Alexandria, Va., along with a niece, nephew, grandniece and grandnephew. Memorial gifts may be made to the Damon C. Miller Fund at the Greater Washington Community Foundation and to ZERO — the End of Prostate Cancer (zerocancer.org). A memorial service was held Feb. 18.
WorldPride 2025 concluded with the WorldPride Street Festival and Closing Concert held along Pennsylvania Ave., N.W. on Sunday, June 8. Performers on the main stage included Doechii, Khalid, Courtney Act, Parker Matthews, 2AM Ricky, Suzie Toot, MkX and Brooke Eden.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Celebrating the transgender community, Baltimore Safe Haven, an organization committed to empowering LGBTQ individuals in Baltimore City, plans to host their fourth annual Baltimore Trans Pride on Saturday.
Instead of the usual parade and march, this year’s Trans Pride will be a block party on Charles Street and between 21st and 22nd Streets. The event will start at 1 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and last until 10 p.m.
Community members can go on guided tours, enjoy refreshments by local vendors, listen to presenters, and watch performances by special guests.
Sukihana, the event’s headliner, plans to take to the stage to entertain the crowd, along with a variety of local performers, according to Melissa Deveraux, Baltimore Safe Haven’s executive assistant to Executive Director Iya Dammons.
“Some (are) prominently known, some (are) just making a name for themselves,” Deveraux said. Iya is always making sure that community talent is showcased at all of our functions.”
In company with Pride on Saturday, Baltimore Safe Haven will be opening its new building on Friday from 1-4 p.m.
“That is sort of going to be the prelude to pride,” Lau said. “Thanks to Sen. Mary Washington and the Weinberg Foundation, we were able to purchase the building outright, and it’s going to be a community hub of administrative buildings and 12-bedroom apartments.”
Renee Lau, administrative assistant for special projects coordinator for Baltimore Safe Haven, said the planning process for Baltimore Trans Pride began in January, and putting it all together was a collaboration of multiple city agencies and organizations.
“Safe Haven is an LGBT community organization, but we service the entire community, and that’s the message we try to spread,” Lau said. “We’re not just here for the LGBT community. We’re here to spread goodwill and offer harm reduction and housing to the entire community.”
Lau said the organization’s biggest goal for the event is to gain exposure.
“(We want) to let and let people know who we are and what our community is about,” she said. “Right now, because of what’s happening in DC, there’s a lot of bad untruths going on, and the total thing is bringing out the truth.”
Deveraux said having a place of inclusivity, acceptance, and togetherness is important in today’s political climate and the current administration.
“This event will have people seeing the strength and resilience of the transgender community, showing that no matter what we are going through, we still show up,” Deveraux said. “We are here, we will not be erased.”
The 2025 WorldPride Parade was held in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, June 7. Laverne Cox and Renée Rapp were the grand marshals.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key and Robert Rapanut)
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