Ina Sussman Miller

Ina Sussman Miller, born in Brooklyn, NY and resident of Albuquerque since 1957, passed on September 12, 2024. She had a remarkable life as a student, an educator, a traveler and a very active member of the community.

She graduated from Packer Collegiate Institute at only 16, and from there went to the University of Michigan where she received a Bachelor’s in French and a Master’s in Linguistics. She won numerous honors for academic achievement and leadership, including Phi Beta Kappa and Mortarboard.

Soon after graduation she married Maynard Miller, whom she had met while he was also a student at the U of M, then she went on to receive a teaching certificate from Wayne State University in Detroit. She and Maynard lived in Maine and had two daughters before moving to Albuquerque.

Ina was on the founding faculty of Sandia HS where she taught French and English, and started her career as a college placement counselor while getting a Master’s in Guidance and Counseling at UNM. After teaching French at the Albuquerque Academy she joined the founding faculty at Sandia School for Girls (later Prep) as assistant to the Headmaster, where she also taught French and did counseling. In 1973 she moved to St. Pius X HS as head counselor.

Maynard “retired” in 1982 when both daughters completed their higher education, and he and Ina did volunteer work in Colombia, Ecuador, Pakistan and India, where Ina had the privilege of consulting with the Dalai Lama’s sister, who was the Minister of Education in the Tibetan government-in-exile.

Ina maintained an independent practice in college counseling until the end of 2022. She spent decades helping over 10,000 teenagers plan their future, and her joy was the success and happiness of her students, quite a few of whom later used her services for their children and grandchildren.

For many years Ina was an active member of both the Rocky Mountain and National Association for College Admission Counselors, and was a fierce advocate for fair college testing, especially for minorities. In addition, in 2013 she was a well-deserved recipient of the Albuquerque Senior Hall of Fame award for her many contributions to the community above and beyond the scope of her professional activities.

Ina and Maynard traveled throughout the world, visiting all seven continents and over 100 countries. She also traveled extensively with her second husband, Edward Blair, whom she married after Maynard’s death. 

Ina is predeceased by her daughter Diana and her husbands Maynard and Edward. She is survived by her daughter Anita (William), and her grandchildren Sara (Seth), Trey and Aaron. Other special relationships are Edward’s daughter Emily (Jacob), Peter Carmany, and Deyang (originally a sponsee from the Tibetan Children’s Village in India), and former exchange students Martine (France), Susanne and Alfred (Germany), and Mladen (former Yugoslavia.)

There will be a celebration of life at the Albuquerque First Unitarian Church at 3701 Carlisle Blvd NE, on Nov 9 at 10 am. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to the Sussman-Miller Educational Assistance Fund, Santa Fe Community Foundation, 501 Halona St., Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505.