Kat Miller, who announced her retirement from the Nevada Department of Veterans Services, spent 34 in the U.S. Army.
The director of the Nevada Department of Veterans Services announced her retirement Monday after spending 10 years with the state agency.
Katherine “Kat” Miller said she wants to spend more time with family, friends and “all those recreational activities I have placed on the back burner.” Her planned retirement date is April 30. Former Gov. Brian Sandoval first appointed her director, and current Gov. Steve Sisolak reappointed her in 2019. Prior to her initial appointment, she was deputy director.
In a letter sent to the leaders of Nevada’s veterans’ service organizations, Miller said she’s honored to follow in the footsteps of 14 other NDVS directors.
“All of us serving at different times and facing different challenges were very different, but we had one thing in common, something unique that no other state agency director had or has,” she said. “Simply put, we were not alone in our mission of veterans advocacy. We were part of a much, much larger ‘tsunami’ of veterans’ support.”
During her tenure as director, she traveled to every corner of the Silver State telling veterans and their families about the four major programs offered by NDVS: preparing and submitting claims for benefits, offering skilled nursing care, providing rural support and reintegrating veterans successfully into the local communities.
The crowning achievement of Miller’s tenure came with the opening of the Northern Nevada State Veterans Home in December 2018. The 96-bed, $47 million facility is located on Battle Born Way in Sparks on state property. Before the veterans home opened, the only state facility was located in Boulder City, which opened in 2002.
"We've had a dire need for a veterans' home for years," said Miller at the opening and ribbon cutting. Many veterans are unable to find affordable nursing and most seek care hundreds of miles from home.”
In addition to the veterans’ home on Battle Born Way, a state Gold Star Families memorial was also constructed on the property and dedicated in 2019.
The number of veterans has also grown in Nevada during the past decade. According to the NDVS, more than 80,000 veterans live in Northern Nevada, and more than 300,000 reside in the state.
Miller has also been involved with NDVS programs and outreach to include women in the military, suicide prevention, veterans' support and the Nevada State Legislature. During Memorial Day activities, she rotated her appearances between the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery and the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City. Every month, Miller presided over ceremonies to recognize the Veteran of the Month and Veteran Supporter of the Month. She was also a frequent visitor at the NNVMC for Wreaths Across America and programs honoring milestones in U.S. military history such as the centennial to remember this country’s entry into World War I in 1917.
“It brought us out as a country when we went to war because of attacks on shipping and fears in Mexico,” Miller said during the April 2017 ceremony.
Miller also revealed her family’s heritage with the military. Her grandfather served as a chief petty officer aboard the USS Pocahontas, a Navy transport ship that was launched in 1900. Miller said her grandfather shared stories that had commonality between them, especially their service in Europe and visiting France. He also told her of the number of dead soldiers and sailors the trip had to transport.
Miller has taken an active role with the annual women’s program and Vietnam War remembrance ceremonies both held in March. In 2021, she was appointed to the Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Rural Health Advisory Committee. The committee studies and analyzes the challenges rural veterans face when accessing health care. Committee members identify barriers and recommend solutions to the Veterans Affairs secretary to facilitate improved access to veterans’ health care in rural areas.
“I’m honored to receive this appointment and serve on behalf of rural veterans,” Miller said after the appointment. “I believe that having the voice of Nevada veterans and veterans of other Western States on this committee is very important in addressing their health care concerns and needs.”
Miller, who grew up in Reno, retired from the U.S. Army as a colonel after a 34-year career. She began her military career as an enlisted soldier and culminated her military service as an officer with assignments as a military police brigade commander serving in the United States and in Afghanistan and as the commander of the Department of Defense’s largest correctional organization.
Miller taught at the University of Maryland and the University of Nevada, Reno. She has a master’s degree in science from the U.S. Army War College and a Master’s of Public Administration from Roosevelt University in Chicago.
