Long serving Holmesville Amish minister John E. Miller dies

John E. Miller, 76, of Holmesville, passed away on November 25, 2025, at Ohio's Hospice Inpatient Unit in Wooster after complications from a heart attack and Parkinson’s disease. The death was announced in an obituary published on November 28, 2025. Born July 10, 1949, Miller was a lifelong member of the Old Order Amish Church and served in church leadership beginning in 1996.

Miller served as a minister for nearly 30 years, a role that placed him at the center of religious and community life for many local families. The obituary lists his survivors as his wife Freda, multiple children, grandchildren and siblings. Funeral arrangements were held at the family home and burial took place in Yoder Cemetery. The notice also expressed thanks to Holmesville EMS and local hospital staff for their assistance. Funeral home contact information and full service details are included in the published obituary, and readers are advised to consult that linked page for visitation and service times.

Miller’s death is of particular note in Holmes County where Old Order Amish congregations maintain close knit social networks and clergy roles are both spiritual and practical. As a minister since 1996, Miller would have presided over religious services, counseling and community decision making, responsibilities that affect family settlements, local gatherings and mutual aid arrangements. The choice to hold funeral services at the family home and to bury in a community cemetery follows long standing local practice and underscores the communal nature of mourning in Amish life.

For residents who relied on Miller’s pastoral care or who participated in the congregation he led, his passing represents a loss of continuity in local religious leadership. The obituary provides additional family details and guidance on contacting the funeral home for those wishing to pay respects or offer support to the family.