Ron Miller and Diane Disney: Silent Partners

Drive 20 minutes to Aspen for a loaf of bread?

In 1977, before Snowmass Village became an incorporated town, Fritz Benedict and I decided to build a shopping center on his land at the base of the Village. We needed a financial partner, and Fritz suggested Ron and Diane Miller. After hearing our plans, the Millers agreed to become our partners. We sent them quarterly reports but, in all the years we were partners, we never received a question or comment from them.

The Snowmass Center, the name I gave our shopping center, was a success from the start. Need groceries? The Snowmass Center has a grocery store. Need something from the drugstore? Stop by the Snowmass Center. The Miller’s home was only a couple of miles away and they regularly shopped at the Snowmass Center, but they never had a complaint or a suggestion.

Diane was the daughter of Walt Disney and Ron was the president of Disney (he was later removed in a coup led by Walt's brother, Roy, who was the subject of the best-selling book Storming the Magic Kingdom.)

When I told them that Betty and I were going to take a vacation to Disney World in Orlando, Diane orchestrated our visit. She set up a private tour for us. The Managing Director spent almost a full day showing us the underground city, the yet unopened wildlife island, and the soon to be opened, Epcot. It was a tour few people have had of the facility and a magical experience.

Ron and Diane did wonderful things in their lives including the building of the Disney Center for the Performing Arts in Los Angeles and the development of Silverado Vineyards on their property in Napa.

After Diane and then Betty had passed away, Ron and I kept in touch by phone every few weeks. We talked about the adjustments we had to make after losing Diane and Betty. Ron liked to discuss activities at his vineyard and the challenges and joys of the wine business. In our last conversation, he was very excited about turning over his huge Colorado ranch to the Nature Conservancy.

I was shocked and saddened when I heard of Ron's untimely death at age 85 on February 19, 2019. I miss our phone calls.

And more memories from my son, Jeff…

When I broke my leg as a kid, I spent the night in the Aspen Valley hospital with Walt Disney’s grandson “Walter.” Later on, while attending Colorado Rocky Mountain School, Tamara Miller was in my class. She must have been Diane and Ron Miller’s daughter. When I asked Tamara if she had a brother named Walter, she was very surprised and said, “How would you know that? "