FROM GUS:

Gary Miller was a beloved part of the WABDL family who has helped me out a lot over the years.  Gary had promoted 10 Pahrump NV meets and one in Las Vegas. His meets always turned out at least 50 lifters. He chose the Nugget Hotel, which was an excellent venue and he always had very capable staff and well-equipped warm-up room. I attended many of those events, and Gary always made me feel welcomed. Because of how he made me feel I always knew that the drive down would be worth it.

Gary loved to ride motorcycles and rode from Pahrump to Sale Late City (about 1000 miles roundtrip) on 4 separate occasions. He would always help out and bring equipment for the warm-up area and the main stage (about 80%) to World Events from 2007-2019. Gary is also a part of our hall of fame and was classified as a world level judge. Although he has passed, he still holds the records for Law-Fire 56-63, Law-Fire 64+, master’s 61-67, and 68-74. He has 8 World Records in Push-Pull, 6 in Deadlift, and 8 in Bench Press. Over his 17-year WABDL career Gary had set 34 different records.

The last time that I saw Gary was at the 2019 Worlds in Las Vegas. He had used my truck to go to Pharump and pick up some equipment. During that time, I couldn’t get a hold of him and was extremely worried. Turns out he ended up spending 4.5 hours in the sauna trying to make it into the 132-weight class. Gary was one of the most passionate and dedicated lifters that I have ever known. He last competed in World Championships in 2019 and assisted in the weigh-in room in Arizona at the World Championships 2021. I knew that wherever Gary was needed he would be there.

Gary was a man of immense faith in God and in Christianity. For the past 8 months I would be on the phone with Gary weekly as he fought with colon cancer. He wasn’t feeling very well on chemo, so he decided to stop treatment about a month before he passed. At the time we both thought that a miracle would happen – and maybe it did. Heaven in a much better place than earth, and I know that with his faith he earned passage through the gates.

I want to thank all the lifters that contributed to Gary’s medical expenses. He was one of my best friends and one of my biggest supporters. No amount of money I could have ever given would equal all that he has done for WABDL.

In closing I am sad to lose my friend, and it will be hard without having his support in running WABDL. May you rest in peace Gary. I’m a much better person just for being able to know you and to have been able to learn from you.

 

Aloha,

Gus Rethwisch