Rochester – Russell "Russ" Alfred Miles, 84, of Strafford, N.H., passed away on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, at Rochester Manor of pulmonary embolisms which affected his heart. He is survived by his beloved wife, Paula Hodges Miles of Stafford, three children, JoAnne Miles-Holmes of Concord, Russell Miles of Durham, and Edward Miles of Strafford, and their spouses: Mark Holmes, Linette Strout Miles, and Maria Creteau Miles, and six grandchildren: George Demosthenes of Nashua, Elizabeth Rodgers of Dover and her partner Matthew Vigeant, Kayli Miles Wilson of Virginia Beach married to Daniel Wilson, Jessie Miles of Barrington, Ian Miles of Durham, and Russell Miles of Chicago. Russ is also survived by his sister Nancy Miles Watson, her husband James Hiram Watson and their children Maryann Clark married to Bill Clark, Jim Watson married to Candice, Tom Watson married to Janice, and his sisters-in-law Margret Hodges Heath married to Freeman Heath, and Debbie Hodges Monday, married to Marvin Monday(deceased) of North Carolina. He was born in Littleton, NH, on September 30, 1937, to the late Russell Augustus and Vivian (Lemire) Miles. Russ attended Catholic grammar schools in Laconia and Rochester, Spaulding Junior and Senior High Schools, graduating in the Class of 1955. He studied electrical engineering at UNH and was drafted into the U.S. Army in May of 1960. He spent his active duty at Fort Bragg, N.C. He was honorably discharged in May of 1962, then served four additional years in the New Hampshire National Guard. While in North Carolina, he drove a group of buddies to Greensboro to check out the Woman’s College of UNC. A buddy found blind dates for the soldiers there and Russ ended up getting to know a freshman, Paula Hodges. They enjoyed dancing the twist together, attending mass, and “studying” on the golf course under their tree. By the time Russ was discharged, they had met with the local priest and made plans to be married on July 2, 1962, in Paula’s hometown of Clinton, N.C. They made their home in East Rochester, N.H., and raised three children there: JoAnne, Russell, and Edward. Russ graduated with a bachelor’s degree from UNH and an MBA from New Hampshire College (SNHU). Although most of his career Russ commuted, sometimes as far as Kezar Falls, ME, or Nashua, NH, working as a quality assurance engineer and as a business consultant, he always made time for his family. In fact, he never brought his work home. He cherished each of the children and encouraged their interests in music, theater, and sports. He took the family backpacking and camping on Sandwich Mountain. Russ drove the family to North Carolina (before air-conditioned cars) for summer vacations on Paula’s family farm to spend time with her parents Fred and Ruby Hodges and his sisters-in-law. He also enjoyed family gatherings with his parents and sister Nancy & her husband Hiram and their children. When Russ retired twenty-some years ago, he began downhill skiing and golfing again. He joined the Silver Streaks Ski Club in Waterville Valley and played as many as 27 holes of golf a day from May to October. He was WV Croquet Club champion several summers (a skill he honed at the Rochester pool hall as a youth). Russ made the most of his retirement years. In 2001, Russ and Paula bought a home in Strafford to help babysit their grandchildren, Kayli and Jessie. At one time two of the grandchildren lived in San Diego, so he and Paula traveled to do some babysitting for Russell and Ian. The two oldest grandchildren, George and Elizabeth lived with Russ and Paula for a time when they were young. Both recently wrote to Russ about how much they valued his influence in their lives. While living in Strafford, Russ enjoyed playing golf at Nippo Lake GC and attended mass at Saint Joseph’s in Northwood. He enjoyed daily visits to Dunkin’ Donuts, where he sat and whiled away the time chatting with high school friends and making new friends. He was a great storyteller. Family and friends enjoyed his tales of driving his MG sports car or “hunting” deer (which meant finding a quiet spot in the woods to take a nap). Russ was very proud of how his children and grandchildren turned out, all being kind, loving, responsible adults much like himself, each one on successful career paths. Russ lived a full life. He will be greatly missed by his family, especially his wife of 60 years. Services–Calling hours 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.on Wednesday, June 29, at Grondin Funeral Home in Rochester. The funeral mass will be held at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church in Rochester on Thursday, June 30, at 10:00 a.m. Burial to follow directly at Holy Rosary Cemetery on Brock Street, Rochester, N.H.