Gary Richard Miles

Gary Richard Miles

July 10, 1941 - February 3, 2025

It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Gary Richard Miles on February 3, 2025, in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. He was born on July 10, 1941, in Denver, Colorado, to the late John H. Miles and Maxine May Meibergen.

Gary is survived by his loving wife of 12 years, Mary Carmen Heft Mikolajcik Miles, his sons Mark David Miles (Alba), Paul Matthew Miles, and Gary R. Miles Jr., as well as his grandchildren Abigail Miles, Alex Miles (Mark), Bryan Miles, Breeann Miles (Gary Jr.), and stepson William Culp and great grand children Charlee and Oliver Miles (Gary, Jr.). He is also survived by his stepchildren Julia Mikolajcik Vanderpool (Anthony), Christina Mikolajcik Edles, and John Paul Mikolajcik, along with his beloved step-grandchildren, who were an integral part of his life for over a decade: Victoria, Alexandria, Sophia, Francesca Vanderpool (Julia), Giuliana Massari, Angelina and Lucaya Robertson, and Simcha and Ziva Mikolajcik Edles (Christina).

Gary graduated from South High School in Denver in 1959 and went on to serve in the U.S. Army from 1965 to 1969. During his service, he was stationed at the National Security Agency in Okinawa, Japan, and California. After his military service, Gary began a family and pursued his education, earning a degree in Fine Arts, followed by a Master's in Landscape Architecture from the University of Colorado.

A lifelong artist, Gary's career flourished when he joined the National Park Service in 1976. There, he combined his passion for art and nature, designing numerous landscape architecture projects across the country, with notable work in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado and Big Bend National Park in Texas.

Gary retired from the National Park Service in the early 2000s and later founded a small landscape architecture firm in Denver, where he worked with private clients. In 2011, Gary reconnected with a former love, Mary Carmen Heft, whom he had known before enlisting in the Army. Carmen, who had been instrumental in his conversion to the Catholic faith, and Gary rekindled their relationship after Carmen was widowed in 2010. They married in 2013 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Upon moving to Mount Pleasant, Gary experienced a renaissance of creativity, creating beautiful oil paintings and sculptures that reflected his deep connection with nature. His travels to North Carolina, Tennessee, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and abroad to Italy, Spain, France, Greece, Turkey, and Israel provided endless inspiration for his work.

Gary's final landscape architecture project was the design and oversight of the St. Benedict Columbarium, where he will be laid to rest.

He will be remembered for his extraordinary talent, his deep love for nature, his dedication to family, and his remarkable contributions to the world of landscape architecture and the arts.

A Rosary Service will be held at 10:00 am, on Saturday, February 15, 2025, St. Benedict Catholic Church, 950 Darrell Creek Trail, Mt Pleasant, SC 29466. A Funeral Mass will immediately follow at 11:00 am. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Vincent DePaul Society at St. Benedict Catholic Church

Expressions of sympathy may be viewed or submitted online at mcalister-smith.com.

Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to McAlister-Smith Funeral and Cremation ~ Mt. Pleasant, 1520 Rifle Range Road, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, 29464 (843) 884-3833.